Naples, 5 May 2016 – free tests for breast cancer and a bouquet of flowers for all mothers. This was the initiative launched by the ‘Santa Maria della Pietà’ Hospital of Casoria (Naples) which is managed by Camillian religious on the occasion of mother’s day. This is a way of thanking women who make motherhood an absolute commitment every day and of reminding women that prevention can save lives.

Indeed, breast cancer remains the most frequent form of cancer in women. Although, on the one hand, the death rate caused by it has decreased – thanks to improvements in treatment and screening; on the other, the number of cases has been constantly increasing. What better occasion, therefore, than mother’s day to give, and give oneself, a free test for breast cancer?

As Brother Carlo Mangione, the director of the ‘Santa Maria della Pietà’ Hospital, explained: ‘Our hospital, as well, wants to make its small contribution to the cause of prevention, especially at a historical moment when, because of economic restrictions, there is a tendency to save on medical check-ups. The charism of our religious Order which was founded by St. Camillus de Lellis, the patron saint of sick people, of nurses and of places of health care, leads us to strive actively for the wellbeing of the sick and those most in need. And mothers, for us, are specifically a luminous example. Indeed, St. Camillus recommended that the sick be cared for in the same way as a mother takes care of her own children’.

‘In recent years, cancer research has made enormous strides forward in the field of the treatment of breast cancer and in understanding the biology of cancer, increasingly allowing an individualised approach to the individual patient which has been translated into a notable increase in survival rates. However, early diagnosis remains crucial. From this point of view, the initiative organised by our hospital seeks to sensitise women to the importance of screening through tests for breast cancer and specific and simplified diagnostic pathways’, observed Claudia Ferrara, the head of the Oncology Unit.

The programme of the initiative ‘Celebrating Today’s and Tomorrow’s Mothers’ envisages three principal moments. On Sunday, 8 May, Mothering Sunday, all the mothers admitted to the hospital will be offered a rose and during the Holy Masses they will receive a special blessing. On 9-10-11 May, from 8.30 to 13.00 and from 14.30 to 18.30, free breast cancer tests will be offered. On Thursday 12 May at 17.30 in Viale delle Beatitudini outside the hospital there will be a moment of fraternity and animation and a buffet for all mothers.

For information:

tel: 388.1877192

e-mail: ospedalecamilliani@gmail.com

internet site: www.ospedalecamilliani.it