Istituto Tumori Bari

"Giovanni Paolo II" I.R.C.C.S.

Team composition

Team Leader: Fulvia Lagattolla, Ricercatrice Sanitaria – Servizio di Psico oncologia,  Irccs Istituto Tumori “Giovanni Paolo II” di Bari.

Team members: Irccs Istituto Tumori “Giovanni Paolo II” di Bari : Servizio di Psiconcologia: Claudia Cormio,  Francesca Romito, Maria Ronchi, Daniela Bafunno; Ambulatorio Tumori Eredo Famigliari: Silvia Costanzo, Margherita Patruno; Breast Unit: Francesco Giotta, Agnese Latorre, Lucia Rinaldi, Annarita Fanizzi, Raffaella Massafra; Cardiologia: Stefano Oliva, Roberta Villoni, Agata Puzzovivo; Unità operativa di ginecologia oncologia: prof. Gennaro Cormio; Ematologia: Carla Minoia, Paolo Ditonno, Crescenza Pasciolla, Bernardo Rossini; Medical Thoracic Oncology Unit: Domenico Galetta, Annamaria Catino, Daniela Bafunno, Vito Longo, Vito Lamorgese, Michele Montrone, Pamela Pizzutilo, Pesola Francesco, Marech Ilaria; Unità di Biostatistica: Simona De Summa; U.O. 3  SSD Patologia Clinica:  Dora Casamassima, Vito Garrisi. 

Taking care of cancer patients means helping them to cope at their best with the experience of cancer illness, and supporting their change and adaptation to the new condition. Psycho-oncological support is a constitutive element of the care pathway and offers listening spaces and screening activities to help both cancer patients and their caregivers. Particular attention is paid to: emotional distress assessment, psychological support from the moment of the diagnosis until after cancer related treatments.  To guarantee the best psycho-physical care, targeted activities are studied and set up with outpatients and hospitalised patients, such as:

• Communicating the genetic diagnosis in BRCA1/2 families.
• Evaluation of coping as a modulator of psychological well-being in cancer patients.
• Evaluation of the effects of targeted musical interventions, Music Therapy and Guided Imagery Music (BMGIM) in Breast Unit patients.
• Evaluation of the multifactorial impact of Music Therapy in patients with Multiple Myeloma during stem-cells transplantation.
• Identification of the main areas of concern generating distress in cancer patients (Italian version of the Checklist Concerns and Health Identifier for Medical Patients CHIMP_Cancer).
• Screening for early diagnosis of possible comorbidities
• Study on Body Image and Quality of Life in breast patients undergoing treatment with/without a cooling helmet.
• Study of the effectiveness of integrative/complementary approaches in psycho-oncology
• Study of the Self Compassion and Quality of Life dimensions in cancer patients (breast, ovary, pancreas, colon).
• Evaluation of the efficacy on psychological symptoms (intrusive thoughts, anxiety and depression) of a short psychotherapy intervention using EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing).
• Impact of Chronic Myeloproliferative Neoplasms on work ability of patients.
• Multifactorial evaluation of sexual life in lymphoma patients.
•  Validation of a patient reported questionnaire for rehabilitation needs in early-stage breast cancer patients.
• Study of the impact of forest therapy on the different psychological aspects of patients, such as stress, depression and anxiety.
• Study of the implications of stigma in the diagnosis and treatment process and in the patients social life,
• Evaluation of the efficacy of the support on lung cancer patients with high levels of distress using the EMDR model.
• Evaluation of the efficacy of the smoking cessation program in cancer patients using the EMDR model.

Team networks: Conservatorio di Cesena “ Bruno Maderna”, Dipartimento di Musicoterapia: prof. Barbara Zanchi; I.R.C.C.S. “Sacro Cuore – Don Calabria”, Negrar; I.R.C.C.S. Centro di Riferimento Oncologico -  Aviano; Policlinico S. Orsola Malpighi – Bologna; Ospedale Policlinico  A. Gemelli  - Roma; U.O.S.D. Psicologia I.R.C.C.S. Istituto Nazionale Tumori “Regina Elena” Roma; S.S.D. Psicologia, I.R.C.C.S. Istituto Nazionale Tumori “Pascale”, Napoli; University of Houston, Graduate College of Social Work : prof. Chiara Acquati; University of Leicester Professor of Liaison Psychiatry & Psycho-oncology:  prof. Alex Mitchell.                       

Key funding: Emotional Distress, Psycho-oncology, Genetic Diagnosis Communication, Body Image, Guided Imagery and Music, Music Therapy, Self Compassion, EMDR.

Key pubblication:

Bafunno, D., Romito, F., Lagattolla, F., Delvino, V. A., Minoia, C., Loseto, G., ... & Cormio, C. (2021). Psychological well-being in cancer outpatients during COVID-19. Journal of BU ON.: Official Journal of the Balkan Union of Oncology, 26(3), 1127-1134.

Cormio, C., Caporale, F., Spatuzzi, R., Lagattolla, F., Lisi, A., & Graziano, G. (2019). Psychosocial distress in oncology: using the distress thermometer for assessing risk classes. Supportive Care in Cancer, 27(11), 4115-4121.

Cormio, C., Muzzatti, B., Romito, F., Mattioli, V., & Annunziata, M. A. (2017). Posttraumatic growth and cancer: a study 5 years after treatment end. Supportive Care in Cancer, 25(4), 1087-1096.

Costanzo, S., De Summa, S., Maurmo, L., Digennaro, M., Patruno, M., & Paradiso, A. (2022). Remote vs in-person BRCA1/2 non-carriers test disclosure: patients’ choice during Covid-19 pandemic restriction. Familial Cancer, 1-6.

Costanzo, S., Cormio, C., Romito, F., Digennaro, M., Patruno, M., Fanizzi, A., & Paradiso, A. (2020). Oncological genetic counseling (OGC) for high-risk hereditary cancer: what can hospital anxiety and depression scale (HADs) tell us?. Journal of BU ON.: Official Journal of the Balkan Union of Oncology, 25(1), 566-573.

Patruno, M., De Summa, S., Resta, N., Caputo, M., Costanzo, S., Digennaro, M., ... & Paradiso, A. (2021). Spectrum of Germline Pathogenic Variants in BRCA1/2 Genes in the Apulian Southern Italy Population: Geographic Distribution and Evidence for Targeted Genetic Testing. Cancers, 13(18), 4714.

Romito, F., Lagattolla, F., Costanzo, C., Giotta, F., & Mattioli, V. (2013). Music therapy and emotional expression during chemotherapy. How do breast cancer patients feel?. European Journal of Integrative Medicine, 5(5), 438-442.

Romito, F., Dellino, M., Loseto, G., Opinto, G., Silvestris, E., Cormio, C., ... & Minoia, C. (2020). Psychological distress in outpatients with lymphoma during the COVID-19 pandemic. Frontiers in oncology, 10, 1270.

Spatuzzi R, Giulietti MV, Romito F, Reggiardo G, Genovese C, Passarella M, Raucci L, Ricciuti M, Merico F, Rosati G, Attademo L, Vespa A.  Becoming an older caregiver: A study of gender differences in family caregiving at the end of life. Palliat Support Care. 2022 Feb; 20(1):38-44. doi: 10.1017/S1478951521000274.

Zanchi, B., Bonfiglioli, L., Nicoletti, G., & Bitti, P. E. R. (2016). Guided Imagery and Music (GIM) as therapy and rehabilitation for cancer survivors. Nordic Journal of Music Therapy, 25(sup1), 84-85.

Zanchi, B., Acler, C., Quadrelli, F. and Trevor-Briscoe, T., 2016. Nurturing the dialogue between intra and inter dimensions of music therapy training and practice. Nordic Journal of Music Therapy, 25(sup1), pp.156-156.