“We have taken a big step back in the early diagnosis of cancers, particularly of the breast, uterus and colorectal. With the onset of the pandemic two years ago, all cancer screenings were effectively canceled. All medical resources have been directed to Covid care. It was no longer possible to take preventive tests ». The collateral damage caused by the virus in the words of Paolo Veronesi, 60, oncologist like his father Umberto who made a change in the fight against cancer: to be faced with the weapons of clinical practice and with the humanity of those who care who, with this infallible method, it nourishes the patient's trust in him. For Veronesi there are university teaching and above all the activity and role at the European Institute of Oncology (Ieo), where he directs the breast care program. You have just outlined the new horizons of the battle against disease in the book “Victory over Cancer. On the side of women: all the treatments to beat breast cancer ”, published by Sonzogno. Next Thursday he will be the guest of “Monitor” live at 9 pm on Videolina. At the center of the episode, edited and conducted by Simona De Francisci, is the theme of inequalities triggered by Covid which has caused so many "collateral victims".
What happened after the terrible phase of total cancellation of the screenings?
"In 2020 the screenings went on in fits and starts. People were afraid. There was still no vaccine and hospitals were seen as places of possible contagion. The women skipped a year of prevention exams. In 2020, no one had ultrasound scans. In 2021, with vaccinations, hospitals have become safer spaces. Now we are trying to recover ».
What are the consequences?
“Today we see tumors on average in a more advanced state than those we used to see in 2019. Before the virus, early diagnosis had improved. We had reached 60 percent of adhesions with mammography screenings. We are now below 50 percent. We have lost thousands of early diagnosed cases. These data do not tell us that there are no tumors, but that many cases will be diagnosed at a more advanced stage, with less chance of recovery and with the need for more invasive surgical and medical therapies ».
