History
The activity of the Department of Medical Oncology at the Fatebenefratelli and Ophthalmic Hospital began thirty-five years ago and over this period has gradually expanded. The integration between different specialists inside the division has, over a period of time, been perfected and refined into an atmosphere of interdisciplinary care and cooperation.
Profile
- Day Hospital Unit (9 beds, 5 armchairs)
- Oncology Ward (15 beds)
- Ambulatory
- Cytostatic Drugs Manipulation Unit
- Ultrasound Unit
- Pain Management Outpatient Unit
- Psycho-Oncology Unit
- Hospice (8 rooms)
- Home Care Assistance
- Research Unit
- ONLUS (Association Project Oncology UMAN.A)
The Department is structured over 4 floors, providing oncologic and palliative care for patients. It is well equipped with all the facilities needed for the diagnosis, administration of chemotherapy, biological targeted therapy and supportive care.
In the Day Hospital Unit, there are 2 oncologists and 6 staff nurses to assist patients undergoing chemotherapy, biological therapy, hydratation, blood transfusions, parenteral nutrition, medications or biopsies, thoracentesis and paracentesis. All the treatments used are prepared in our Cytostatic Drugs Manipulation Unit.
In the Oncology Ward patients are either in a diagnostic phase, receiving chemotherapy or in need of supportive care. Patients are followed by 2 oncologists and a staff team composed of 13 nurses and 1 ward sister. Patients undergoing ambulatory treatments or follow-up are visited in the Ambulatory Unit by 6 oncologists.
Through the years the Medical Oncology Department has developed interdisciplinary working with the Supportive and Palliative Care Unit which was created as a subsidiary service inside the department. Here palliative care specialists work closely with the oncologists and share the care for in- and out-patients. 2 psychologists specialised in psychoanalytic psychotherapy offer psychological assistance to patients and their relatives. Terminal patients who are no longer benefiting from anticancer treatments continue to be followed at home by the Home Care Assistance Unit (created in 1994). The staff members consisting of 2 physicians, a nurse coordinator and 4 nurses, being available 24 hours a day / 365 days a year to assist patients at home, providing control of symptoms, giving support to family members and when possible, giving health and orthopaedic devices. Terminal patients who cannot manage at home are cared for in the Hospice by 1 palliative care specialist, 1 ward sister, 8 nurses, 6 healthcare workers and a chaplain.
Through our Research Unit (composed of 4 oncologists, 1 palliative care specialist, 1 nurse, 1 bio-statistic, 2 study coordinators, 1 pharmacist and 1 psychologist), many national and international trials around supportive care are carried out. With the help of 25 volunteers, the Association Project Oncology UMAN was developed to offer tools to help cancer patients and their families to cope with the disease.
Specialities
The principal tumours treated are: breast, colon, stomach, lung, pancreas, kidney, brain and bladder cancers, leukaemia and other haematological malignancies.
Cancer patients are managed using a multidisciplinary approach involving all professional staff of the Oncology Department. The multidisciplinary team is made up of:
- 15 oncologists
- 2 haematologists
- 34 nurses
- 3 palliative care specialists
- 3 psychologists
- 1 psychiatrist
- 2 study coordinators
- 1 pharmacist
- 1 bio-statistician
- 10 healthcare workers
- 1 chaplain
- 25 volunteers
Palliative and Supportive Care
In the Department, specialists of the Supportive and Palliative Care department interact with each other through weekly meetings where clinical cases are discussed. Patients are cared for at the same time by all the specialists who share the written protocols being used (e.g. pain, nutrition, oral hygiene, infectious disease management, bowel occlusion, etc.). Our palliative care specialists participate in the COSD Project (Comitato Ospedale Senza Dolore – Pain free Hospital), promoted by Lombardy Region Bureau and our Home Care Assistance programme obtained Joint Commission Accreditation in 2009.
Last update: February 2025
