Belle against cancer: image consultants arrive at Gemelli

'IO - Despite everything' project presented. Healthy (Gemini): "Explore the talc issue and ovarian cancer risk"

ROME – It is possible to talk about make up, haircuts and skin care when faced with a diagnosis of female cancer ? Yes, and the answers come from the ‘IO- Despite everything’ project, presented today at the Gemelli Polyclinic in Rome and dedicated to patients being treated in the Gynecology department Oncologicalof the Capitoline hospital.
“This project – explains to the Dire agency the head of the Innovative Therapies Unit for female tumors, gynecological oncology at the Gemelli Polyclinic, Vanda Salutari– yes aimed precisely at women affected by female tumors who find themselves facing chemotherapy. The name says it all: despite a woman facing cancer gynecological doctor feels stripped of her femininity, of her being a woman, ‘IO- Despite everything’ intends to relaunch the female image: even if she is suffering from cancer and even if she is facing a battle against a gynecological tumor , wants to rediscover herself as a woman. And this especially when chemotherapy also strips patients of their femininity, because their hair falls out and their skin becomes duller. It is precisely in those moments that you no longer feel like taking care of your image”.
Today, therefore, the introduction to the project, carried out by real image consultants, who they carried out an analysis of the patients from an aesthetic point of view. “The consultants – he continues – studied the color of the eyes of the patients, the color of their skin and carried out a real image consultancy, including armocromia, evaluating how to enhance women in their femininity, recommending the colors with which to dress, the make-up with which to enhance one’s face, giving a whole series of aesthetic suggestions to feel beautiful despite the illness, despite everything“.
The message is clear: it is essential to take care of yourself even in moments of difficulty and >seeing yourself beautiful can help improve your quality of life. “Today we have very powerful treatments available – Salutari recalls – treatments that have revolutionized the way we deal with gynecological tumors and today we are able to cure ours more patients. But very often these treatments have an impact on their quality of life and actions like these really serve to improve it, because feeling good about one’s body and feeling beautiful helps not only oneself in relating to others, with family and friends but it also gives a positive boost to face treatment. And if we improve the treatments and the quality of life, we also improve the outcome of the treatments themselves”.
Oncology and image consultancy, therefore, closely linked in a relationship that involves young people and fewer young cancer patients. “The women involved in the ‘IO- Despite everything’ project are of all ages, even if the initiative is aimed at young women who are a little more socially engaged, working women, women who have an important role in their family and who, despite everything, face an illness”.
But the project also embraces older women. “Once – says Doctor Salutari – a 73 year old patient of mine, talking about capillary prostheses, asked me not to think she was vain and told me that she wanted to continue to feel like a beautiful woman as she had been in the past. This problem is certainly felt more by younger women, who are devastated by a diagnosis of gynecological cancer and the need to undergo chemotherapy. But even older women can benefit from ‘IO – Despite everything’ and from being able to take care of their image, feeling better about themselves and with the people around them who love them, especially in this delicate moment of their lives “.

THE NUMBERS AND THE INCREASE IN CANCERS AMONG YOUNG PEOPLE

Since 2023, at the Innovative Therapies Unit for female tumors, gynecological oncology Policlinico Gemelli 120 patients aged between 20 and 45 have been treated. A phenomenon, that of the increase in cancer cases in the younger segments of the population, which does not leave even Dr. Salutari indifferent. “The problem of the increase in tumors in the younger stages and also tumors that we were used to seeing in the older stages of life – he states – presents us with problems that are certainly of environmental influence” .
“As far as the problems of gynecological tumors are concerned, ovarian cancer has no proven predisposing environmental factors. We have seen the history of talc, but yes This is an issue that needs to be explored further. It is true that it is indicated among the substances that can predispose to ovarian cancer but this communication must be made with caution, because that of ovarian cancer it is above all a multifactorial genesis and, beyond the familial risk, we have not yet intercepted real environmental factors that can increase this type of neoplasia”.
“As regards endometrial cancer – specifies the expert – the environmental factor, the dietary factor and also the obesity factor may have increased the incidence. Cervical cancer is instead related to the Papilloma virus and if we embraced the vaccination campaign as happens in Northern European countries we could certainly greatly reduce the incidence of this type of tumor”.
“However, it is a fact – underlines Vanda Salutari – that today tumors in the juvenile phase have increased and the effort of oncology is to look for possible agents in the environmental factors that may have created this problem and certainly in something will come out in the future”. of a more operational nature: on 28 May and 4 June, at the Day Hospital, on the tenth floor, where the therapeutic terrace is located, make-up, color matching and aesthetic sessions will be held, aimed specifically at women who are there to do chemotherapy. Our onco-beauticians will work hard to make our patients more beautiful.
Because taking care of yourself, of your image, rediscovering yourself attractive ‘despite everything’, inevitably improves the quality of life.