The italian National Day of Oncology Patients is celebrated every year on the third Sunday of May and serves as a reminder of one important truth: the oncology patient is not their illness, but a person who has the illness, with a body and a mind.
Compassion is often overlooked as an essential component in accompanying the most vulnerable patients throughout their cancer treatment journey and leading them to complete healing. While the body can be treated, if the mind is not balanced and actively worked on in collaboration with the patient’s will to heal, the disease can become a refuge and the only aspect for which they are seen, inevitably hindering the possibility of achieving total healing.
This is one of the most important aspects of integrative oncology, a topic that will be further explored at Icim, the Second World Congress of Integrative Medicine and Health, which will take place in Rome from September 20th to 23rd, 2023.
The integrative vision of the cancer patient is based on the premise that there is no single valid protocol for everyone. In recent decades, tremendous progress has been made in understanding neoplasms: the smallest and punctual DNA changes capable of transforming a normal cell into a cancerous one have been identified. However, this has not defeated cancer. We continue to die from and because of cancer.
In Italy, approximately 370,000 citizens are affected by cancer each year. Currently, 50% of patients manage to recover, with or without disabling consequences, while the other 50% become chronic, living more or less long lives. Experimental research, diagnostics, medicine, surgery, and new cancer therapies are showing positive effects on the course of the disease, significantly extending the lives of patients without hope of a cure. However, while the benefits of scientific progress have eliminated the inevitable equation of “cancer equals death,” new problems have emerged concerning the patients’ lives. Men and women of all ages and social conditions have become the protagonists of a daily struggle against their own cancer, involving both their bodies and minds.
The question remains the same: How is it possible that two people with the same histological diagnosis, the same genetic mutations, and the same therapeutic approaches and protocols have different objective, subjective, and physical responses? It is essential to recognize the most significant fact: they are two distinct individuals with different cells, and thus, the response will be different.
This gives rise to the new perspective of person-centered medicine, which considers the individual as a whole, including the body, mind, spirit, and the environment in which they are immersed.
Chemotherapy alone is not enough to destroy individual cancer cells. It is necessary to study all the factors that have contributed to the cell’s transformation into a neoplastic one, such as nutrition, environment, psyche, physical activity, and stress. This approach, now universally understood, is known as integrative oncology (IO).
However, how many people truly understand its meaning? Many still consider it as an alternative medicine, which is entirely incorrect.
Integrative oncology is not even an alternative/complementary medicine, as it is not a complement to conventional therapy. It is evidence-based medicine, both scientifically and clinically, drawing influences from medical traditions such as traditional Chinese medicine, homeopathy, Ayurvedic medicine, and anthroposophic medicine.
These disciplines not only have clinical validation through traditional use but also undergo scientific studies that have elucidated their specific biological action. When referring to these approaches, we consider what nature and our body can offer: natural substances, acupuncture, meditation, movement, and nutrition.
Treating the disease is important, but it is equally crucial to help the person understand what they can do to prevent relapses, such as following a proper diet, living in a healthy environment, and being surrounded by their family. Bringing the patient back to healthy thoughts, a serene life, and being cared for by physicians who are not only professionally prepared but also willing to listen and reflect. This process enhances individuals’ capacity not only to heal but, above all, to thrive.
Nevertheless, it is not intended to support the ineffectiveness of conventional cancer treatments such as chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Integrative medicine emphasizes the importance of coordinated use of both conventional and complementary medical treatments. Several studies have shown that this integration has helped patients manage symptoms and side effects of anticancer drugs, thereby improving their response to therapies.
A recent survey conducted by the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) revealed that less than half of the interviewed oncologists discussed the use of complementary therapies with their patients, and only a minority of these conversations were initiated by the oncologists themselves. Many doctors are reluctant to ask patients about their use of such therapies because they do not know what to do with the information and are unaware of the risks and/or benefits of integrative treatments. Additionally, physicians may not be familiar with the role of complementary therapies in symptom management. As a result, many patients report not receiving enough information about which therapies to use, and many choose therapies based on advice from their family and friends rather than from a healthcare professional, risking harm from improper use of integrative treatments.
Hence, the importance of an integrative oncologist arises—a new medical figure with a patient-centered and evidence-based approach that embraces mind-body practices and has introduced a significant change compared to the traditional physician role: listening to the patient before treating them.
Access to therapies, rehabilitation, quality of life, challenges in the doctor-patient relationship, palliative care, pain management, employment rights, and accurate information for patients are just a few of the issues raised and explored in specific sessions every year.
For this reason, thanks to the strong media attention it attracts, the National Day of Oncology Patients represents a unique opportunity to bring the requests and needs of oncology patients and their families to the attention of institutions and the general public. This day should not be seen merely as a compassionate celebration of the suffering and rights of oncology patients, but as a true celebration of those who courageously and determinedly fight every day to defeat the disease.