The cost of breast cancer on patients: 500 euros per year

Our health system provides free cancer treatments, but there are other drugs that are used to manage side effects of the disease and drugs and that, for the most part, are purchased out of pocket directly by patients. Speaking of breast cancer, it is estimated that 41% of these costs are borne by women and their families. Costs to which are added those for specialist visits and diagnostic tests, often performed privately to reduce waiting times in the health system. All these costs have a definition, that of financial toxicity of cancer.

Financial Toxicity at the Center of the Andos Congress

Precisely financial toxicity, which affects 38% of the more than 55 thousand women who get breast cancer every year, is one of the central themes of the 42nd National Congress of Andos (National Association of Women with Breast Surgery), 'Andos and Europe', opened on June 5 in Gorizia, where the results of the survey dedicated to the financial burden of the disease will be presented. "Breast cancer does not only have health consequences, but also psychological and economic ones - explains Flori Degrassi , National President of Andos -. Private expenses are equivalent to about 500 euros per patient every year. Financial toxicity is an increasingly central theme: for this reason, as an association, we have created a survey that presents data relating to the costs of the disease, but also to the psychological needs and fears of women with breast cancer".

Two European projects

Andos wants to offer women a look at the healthcare landscape, to be active subjects both in the therapeutic processes and in the phase preceding the disease, that of prevention, and the three-day event will focus on the crucial role of European patient associations. It is from this premise that two projects were born, which will be presented during the event: Safe Together, conceived in collaboration with Polish and Croatian associations, which aims to create guidelines dedicated to the training of caregivers of terminally ill patients, so that they can take care of both the healthcare and psycho-oncological aspects, and Shield, which aims to bring culturally and economically disadvantaged women closer to the screenings offered in the area.

“The choice to hold this 42nd edition of our National Congress in Gorizia is not a coincidence - underlines Degrassi - given that the city has in fact been declared European Capital of Culture 2025 together with Nova Gorica”.

The point on treatment pathways

The conference will also discuss how to personalize early diagnosis based on a correct calculation of individual clinical risk, taking into account some genetic conditions that require specific diagnostic-therapeutic approaches, such as Brca gene mutations. The importance of a multidisciplinary approach and continuity of treatment will be emphasized. Some of the most qualified professionals will present updates on therapeutic innovations that allow us to obtain results that were unthinkable until a few years ago, even in advanced disease conditions. At the center of everything is the patients' point of view.

“In the last ten years we have witnessed a real paradigm shift,” recalls Fabio Puglisi , full professor of Medical Oncology at the University of Udine and director of the Department of Medical Oncology at the IRCCS Cro in Aviano. Today we can personalize treatment based on the molecular characteristics of the tumor and the clinical and genetic profile of the patient. We have more effective endocrine therapies, biological drugs such as CDK4/6 inhibitors, new oral agents against specific mutations such as ESR1 and PIK3CA, and antibody-drug conjugates (known by the acronym ADC) that combine the effectiveness of chemotherapy with the precision of targeted therapies.

Furthermore, for some more aggressive forms, such as triple-negative cancer, immunotherapy and drugs that act on specific targets are available. “For many women, living with metastatic breast cancer today can mean living longer, with fewer symptoms and a good quality of life,” says Puglisi. “The future is played out on molecular diagnosis, equal access to care and collaboration between doctors, patients and institutions.”

Artificial Intelligence in Early Diagnosis

Artificial intelligence could not be missed, increasingly a protagonist in the healthcare world, and not only. “It offers a unique opportunity to revolutionize the radiological screening processes for breast cancer - explains Francesca Caumo , director of the UOC of Senological Radiology and Oncology at the Veneto Oncology Institute, IRCCS of Padua -. This advanced technology allows for personalization based on risk factors and breast density, improving the accuracy of diagnoses. Thanks to its ability to perform triage, AI can optimize the efficiency of radiologists, reducing their workload and allowing them to focus on more complex and high-risk cases”.

Radiology, the expert recalls, “plays a crucial role in the early diagnosis of breast cancer, also thanks to emerging techniques such as contrast-enhanced mammography and interventional practices that are now indispensable for diagnosis and therapy”. The use of AI in this context not only accelerates image analysis, but also improves sensitivity and specificity in detecting anomalies, thus contributing to timely and targeted treatment.

“By integrating artificial intelligence into radiology workflows,” Caumo concludes, “we can improve the quality of care and support radiologists in providing more accurate and safe diagnoses for patients.”