Florence, November 22, 2020 – “How long do I have to live doctor?”. The question resounds in the silence of the living room. “A month, perhaps.” A sigh and then the answer. “I hope to leave soon. I’m tired. “Heartbreaking scenes of aemergency overshadowed by the pandemic. They are alone in the midst of the storm and face a double battle: the cancer and the virus. Cancer patients pay the highest price for the epidemic that has brought the health system to its knees. Postponed screening, treatment delays, limited psychological assistance. Covid has exacerbated the difficulties of the most fragile people, making the contribution of third sector associations even more important. At the forefront of this challenge is the Toscana Tumori Association (Att) which for more than 20 years has been offering assistance to people with cancer in Florence and beyond.
“Patient requests usually grow by 5-6%, in 2020, due to the virus, they increased by 20% – analyzes Giulio Ravoni, medical coordinator of theTo -, a boom dictated by the need for home care. Clearly there is fear of hospitals, but also of the delay in follow-up and diagnosis that have indirectly favored the emergence of new cases. “The meeting with Dr. Ravoni to follow his day takes place at the headquarters of the non-profit organization, near the Campo di Marte station. “This morning I have three visits to update the patients about their situation”, he explains. He prepares the bag, gets into the car and shortly thereafter we are in the house of a patient. His name is Lapo and he has a pancreatic cancer. The news of the doctor is not good: the chemotherapy no longer works and must be stopped. Unfortunately it remains only to wait. Lapo has a wife and children next to him. Many others are alone.
Currently the ATT follows 90 cancer patients by providing health but above all psychological assistance. “Our motto is ‘never alone’: loneliness and illness are two sides of the same coin – explains the president of the ATT Giuseppe Spinelli -, we struggle to overcome the sense of abandonment of the sick through the human warmth that is a part of the cure “. A mission carried out by psychologists and volunteers who accompany and support the sick in the last period of life.” I started in 2008 when I retired – says Fabrizio Palloni, a volunteer for more than 10 years – I felt the need to do something for someone less fortunate than me. “First office work, then home care to give comfort to patients.” I had a very long experience, 5 years, with a person who has remained in my heart. His name was Franco and he was alone: the family had broken up and his son had moved away from him. We met weekly, for a coffee or a walk, and every time I came home with a smile because I was able to make him happy. At one point his condition plummeted, he went into a coma and died shortly after. It shocked me a lot. “
After months of phone calls, visits and walks, a deep bond had formed. “From that day on I took a pause for reflection – Fabrizio confesses – they asked me to follow another patient but I don’t feel like it”. Stories of suffering and solidarity, today threatened by the virus. If on the one hand, in fact, Covid-19 has increased the request for home assistance to the ATT, on the other it has canceled the revenues of the association that is financed only through donations from citizens.
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