“There's no Reason why”: A Campaign to Raise Cancer Awareness among Adolescents

Abstract

Introduction Adolescents with cancer often experience a longer diagnostic delay than children, mainly because they take longer to go to a doctor. The Italian Society for Adolescents with Oncohematological Diseases (SIAMO) has launched an information campaign focusing on raising adolescents’ awareness of the importance of diagnosing cancer early. Methods The concepts of the campaign were developed by a scientific committee of clinicians, cancer patients and their parents, and marketing experts. The title of the campaign is “There's no reason why”. A video has been launched on TV channels and the Internet, and the final frame refers viewers to the SIAMO website, which provides advice to help adolescents interpret any symptoms they experience. Results The video has had 12,181 views. In the 6 months following the launch of the campaign, the SIAMO website page dedicated to the campaign was opened by 9,767 viewers for a total of 13,632 views. Conclusions Though it remains very difficult to judge the efficacy of this initiative, the value of a campaign focusing on improving the adolescent population's cancer awareness is supported by the large number of studies published on the diagnostic delay in this age group. Our campaign goes to show the importance of ensuring cooperation between the different stakeholders involved in the global care of adolescents with cancer.

Evolving Services for Adolescents with Cancer in Italy: Access to Pediatric Oncology Centers and Dedicated Projects

“…The improvement in the services for adolescents in Italy may be at least partly because of the successful communication strategy of the AIEOP Committee on Adolescents, involving various initiatives to improve the scientific community's awareness, and educational projects designed for teenagers and their families. In particular, it is worth mentioning the campaign, ''There's no reason why'' (to improve awareness that cancers can occur in adolescence too), 30 the campaign #fattivedere (an Italian term with the dual meaning of ''Don't hide!'' and ''Get a check-up'') to help young people to interpret any symptoms they experience, seek medical advice, and arrive at an earlier diagnosis), 31 and the ''Winners' Cup'' (a football tournament for adolescents with cancer, or a history of cancer; in its third edition in 2019, young people from eight different European countries were involved).…”

Measuring the efficacy of a project for adolescents and young adults with cancer: A study from the Milan Youth Project

“…Research is another key issue for programs dedicated to AYA. Several studies on AYA have been conducted by the INT Youth Project staff (some already published, others ongoing) on matters such as psychosocial support needs, epidemiology, clinical outcomes, and basic science studies on tumor biology across the age spectrum …”

“…Several studies on AYA have been conducted by the INT Youth Project staff (some already published, others ongoing) on matters such as psychosocial support needs, epidemiology, clinical outcomes, and basic science studies on tumor biology across the age spectrum. [16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][27][28][29][30][31] The last parameter considered in our list concerned the community's recognition of the Youth Project's activities. The large number of articles published in the mass media and the numerous events/meetings in which the Youth Project's initiatives were presented and discussed may be seen as further proof of its effectiveness.…”

Model of Care for Adolescents and Young Adults with Cancer: The Youth Project in Milan

“…The results showed that, although they are concerned about their own well-being, they often postpone reporting any symptoms they are experiencing to an adult, as other studies had previously reported (41, 42). Enlightened by the effective need to improve awareness, SIAMO launched two campaigns [#fattivedere – Italian term with a double meaning: “Don’t hide!” and “Get a check-up,” and “There is no reason why” (43)] targeted to reduce the diagnostic delay that AYA with cancer experience. Both of these campaigns were linked to the SIAMO website page that provides information on how to interpret symptoms.…”