Detect and treat tumors in a more accurate, targeted and personalized way in Lombardy, with the revolution of the Molecular Tumor Board
The Molecular Tumor Board revolution in Lombardy Region: a new approach to oncology
Detect and treat tumors in a more accurate, targeted and personalized way in Lombardy, with the revolution of the Molecular Tumor Board.
According to the latest data, In the Lombardy Region it is estimated that approximately 60.000 new cases of cancer are diagnosed every year, which translate into a incidence rate of 6 new tumors per 1.000 inhabitants.
The number of new diagnoses is constantly increasing for multiple factors, including the spread of screening or other forms of early diagnosis of some tumors (e.g. breast, colorectal, etc.) and the increase in life expectancy.
Today's initiative, Tuesday 26 November 2024, of the Councilor Emanuele Monti and with the involvement of professionals, patients and experts in the sector, held at Palazzo Pirelli and promoted by Italian Health Policy Brief is a significant path of the work of Lombardy Region for the establishment of a Molecular Tumor Board, a clinical-organizational governance tool for a increasingly personalized approach to oncology.
A multidisciplinary model, already implemented in several Italian regions, and a significant innovation in the field of personalized oncological care, which offers an approach based on the in-depth analysis of molecular alterations of tumors to improve therapeutic accuracy.
It was talked about in Milano as part of the press conference “The revolution of Molecular Tumor Board in Lombardy Region, a new approach to oncology”, promoted by Italian Health Policy Brief on the initiative of Councilor Emanuele Monti, in the presence of the President of the Lombardy Region Attilio Fontana, and with the involvement of professionals, patients and experts in the sector.
An opportunity for discussion between regional institutions, clinicians, patient associations and other stakeholders regarding the most effective ways of implementing regional MTB.
“Once again Applied clinical research and care innovation lead direct benefits to patient care - the words of the president Attilio Fontana -. It is also important to use technological instruments and telemedicine to offer direct, constant and targeted contact between the patient and the care offered. The Lombardy Region is the national leader of an important PNRR project for the implementation of Telemedicine, of which we hope to see the first results, starting from particularly dedicated areas such as oncology. Sharing health data is another crucial element for the future of personalized cancer care and, more generally, for innovation in the medical field. Access to and integration of patients' clinical and molecular data can in fact accelerate the progress of research, improve the effectiveness of treatments and optimize the management of healthcare resources".
“The establishment of the Molecular Tumor Board - explains Emanuele Monti – represents a crucial milestone for oncology in Lombardy, confirming our region as a point of reference for innovation and quality of care. Every year, in Lombardy, approximately 60.000 new cases of cancer, and thanks to our commitment to prevention and early diagnosis we continue to guarantee patients increasingly effective and personalized treatment pathways. As President of the Health Commission in the last legislature and today of the Welfare Commission, I have worked to ensure that our social health system could adopt advanced technologies such as genomic profiling e multidisciplinary organizational models. The Molecular Tumor Board is the result of this commitment: a concrete step towards a future in which every patient can receive targeted and tailor-made therapies, strengthening the excellence of our regional healthcare system”.
To open i works, moderated by Stefano del Missier by Italian Health Policy Brief, next to the governor Attilio Fontana also Adele Patrini, FAVO Regional Coordinator.
“The establishment of the Molecular Tumor Board represents ainnovation in the oncology field in terms of themes, contents and application of precision medicine - stresses Adele Patrini -. This allows us to provide the most appropriate tools to all health and social workers for more advanced and appropriate patient care. The synthesis is represented by an innovation/revolution that opens up to a very significant change in cultural vision”.
So a picture of the future prospects of MTB and regional policies with Marco Alparone (Regional Councillor for Budget and Finance) and Alessandro Fermi (Regional Councillor for University, Research, Innovation).
And then a speech on the topic of collaboration and synergies between regional oncology centers (With Sabrina Good, Director of the regional coordination centre for laboratory medicine ASST Grande Ospedale metropolitano Niguarda) and on role of MTB in personalizing cancer care with the involvement, among others, of Giuseppe Curigliano (Director of the Division of Development of New Drugs for Innovative Therapies and Co-Director of the Drugs Program – IRCCS European Institute of Oncology), Philip De Braud (Director of the Department and Division of Medical Oncology – IRCCS National Cancer Institute of Milano) to Armando Santoro (Head of Medical Oncology, IRCCS Humanitas Research Hospital).
The voice of patients closed the proceedings, underlining the importance of this new paradigm, with an approach to care increasingly “tailor-made” and adapted to the individual.
“Over the last few years we have been witnessing a a real scientific revolution and cultural in the approach to the cancer patient - explains the Professor Armando Santoro -; the so-called "histological model" which has historically regulated therapeutic indications, as well as clinical research, is being accompanied by a new model defined as “mutational” which paved the way for thePrecision Oncology. In this context the establishment of the Regional Molecular Tumor Board, as the competent body responsible for indicating the execution of complex genomic tests and for interpreting the results, represents a extraordinary opportunity for the development of personalized oncological therapies in the Lombardy region, for early access to innovative treatments, but above all for the implementation of a new paradigm of cancer patient management that combines technology, scientific advancement and multidisciplinarity. The Molecular Tumor Board will allow everyone to adequately address the growing challenges posed by the exponential increase in knowledge of tumor genomics, ensuring the best prospects of assistance and care for our patients”.
In Italy
In implementation of Legislative Decree 152/2021 (initiatives to strengthen precision medicine envisaged by the PNRR), the Ministry of Health ha approved the technical document “Establishment of the Molecular Tumor Boards and identification of specialist centers for the execution of Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) genomic profiling tests”, containing criteria, methods and procedures for the establishment of MTBs within regional oncology networks, which the Regions must adopt. To date, 20 multidisciplinary groups have been activated in the country, but without uniform coverage of the national territory.
Compared to other Italian regions, Lombardy was one of the first countries to activate the Regional Oncology Network to the establishment of Molecular Tumor Board (MTB) starting from oncology centers of excellence in the region. The activation of the regional MTB – consisting of a coordination body; clinical-assistance joints and multidisciplinary oncology groups – arrived with resolution no. XII/2442 in the session of 3 June 2024.
Reproduction reserved © Copyright La Milano