CANCER REHABILITATION IN SOUTHERN EUROPE: AN OVERVIEW

In Oncology, the increasing efficacy of the therapies and the increasing adherence to cancer screening programs for the early diagnosis have greatly improved prognosis, determining a progressive and constant reduction of mortality and a gradual increase in the number of cancer survivors, i.e., people in remission living with a previous cancer history. The new Oncology challenge, therefore, consists in guaranteeing the best survival and quality of life to these people, answering their health needs, promoting research and preservation of physical and psycho-social wellbeing, rehabilitation of impaired functions, assisting the patient in active and productive reassignment to pre-illness social roles (working, family, etc.). This paper describes the state of the art of cancer rehabilitation in southern European countries (Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Cyprus, Greece, Italy, Macedonia, Malta, Montenegro, Portugal, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain, Turkey). The sources consist of institutional web sites and international English language literature accessible through the PubMED and Scopus databases. The mapping of cancer rehabilitation care resources in Southern Europe shows that the provision of rehabilitative services is heterogeneous, depending on whether or not a Country and its cancer control strategy considers rehabilitation an element or just an option in the multidisciplinary cancer care. Moreover, cultural, linguistic, economic heterogeneity of these countries located in this macro-geographical area should not be overlooked.