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The truth is that with the advent of medicine, more and more cases are being detected and thousands of lives are saved by obtaining the right medication and starting treatment on time.
However, for people with blood and other rare forms of cancer not only to receive the best possible treatment, but also to be educated about their disease and receive psychological support, the help of public organizations is needed. It has been such an activity in Lithuania since 2002. the existing association “Blood”.
All kinds of help
“Our main goal is to help patients with blood cancer diseases: from psychological to better medications. We provide psychologist consultations, organize mutual understanding groups, seminars, conferences with doctors, as well as publish educational publications on blood diseases, we cooperate with drug manufacturers ”, says I. Drėgvienė and says that patients who know their disease well are much better adhering to the treatment regimen.
However, according to I. Drėgvienė, the part of the association’s activity that requires the most time, knowledge and energy is health policy.
“A successful fight against the disease largely depends on the availability of the necessary treatment. In Lithuania, the situation regarding cancer treatment is not bad: high medical skills, patients in recovery, but the availability of drugs is still far behind. from developed countries, and in Lithuania, in some cases, patients have been waiting for an innovative solution that saves their lives. Medicines for many years. It is precisely because patients receive the best conditions and the right medicines that we work for ” says the headline of Kraujas.
However, according to her, challenges remain. “When it comes to health policies, it is very important to fight for the most innovative treatments and medicines to reach our patients as soon as possible. There are many diseases of the blood, and among them they are extremely rare, so not all medicines are reimbursed. In this case, patients have to buy them on their own. However, there are some patients who simply do not have the financial capacity to buy the drugs they need. Then they turn to us and we do our best to be able to buy drugs that they are vital for these people, ”says I. Drėgvienė.
No less important is the association’s mission: to encourage people to sign up for unpaid bone marrow donation.
“We are running a” Be Good “social project, in which we invite people between the ages of 18 and 35 to enroll in the bone marrow donor registry. For people with blood cancer, drug treatment alone does not always helps, so the only chance for survival is a bone marrow transplant. Unfortunately, sometimes we don’t even find the right one among more than 37 million volunteer donors, so every member of society is critical. Knowing that, perhaps, your free donation has saved someone’s life, the best feeling in the world ”, says the interlocutor.
The biggest impact is hearing the diagnosis.
According to I. Drėgvienė, psychological help is especially important for patients with cancer diseases, because only a person who thinks positively can hold on to life.
“Usually the most difficult period for a patient is only after the diagnosis of the disease, so I really think that many people who hear the diagnosis for the first time need psychological help. Unfortunately, the consultation of a psychologist is not provided in Lithuania only after the disease has been diagnosed, therefore, people must seek help themselves. And this is where we and our team of specialists appeared ”, says the head of Kraujas.
According to her, the people who visit the association and work with psychologists are very diverse: with their own problems, expectations and attitudes towards illness and life.
“He is very young, old and old. I really cannot rule out that one age group is more sensitive to the disease and another is less sensitive. However, women, for example, seek help more often than men. Probably, it is something natural: men think they have to be strong even at that point in life. However, the truth is that they too need help “, I. Drėgvienė does not hesitate.
The need to see a psychologist herself, she said, is also different. “Some people only need it once, and others need 20 or more. And this is normal because everyone takes their illness differently. Not only that, some people feel alone, they do not have the support of their loved ones, for what to talk to psychologists is very important to them.
There are also cases in which the patients themselves are fine, they are strong, but their loved ones are devastated. Therefore, there are many situations in which members of the patient’s family visit psychologists. The patient’s own psychological condition largely depends on the success of the treatment and whether it bears fruit. If the condition of patients improves, it is natural, and their well-being, thinking becomes positive. They go back to work and social life, ”explains I. Drėgvienė.
However, not only the consultation of a psychologist, but also communication between patients can generate positive and positive emotions.
“We also have group sessions, where once a week patients meet to communicate, share their stories, tell each other, motivate themselves and thus achieve positive emotions. Now all this is happening remotely, but the essence does not change, communication between people with oncological diseases is part of a successful fight against the disease “, says the interlocutor.
Green corridors
It is usually necessary to wait 30 days or more for specialist advice on blood-related diseases, such as a decrease in hemoglobin, but when cancer is suspected, there is no time to wait because every day is important to gold. For this reason, 5 years ago the Green Corridors were opened in the Santara clinics, and then in other cities.
The Green Corridor is a mechanism to regulate patient queues to expedite medical care for people with oncology. Patients suspected of having cancer for the first time have the opportunity to receive an emergency consultation without having to wait in a common queue. This means that a doctor (usually a family) who suspects the disease can register their patient via esveikata.lt and therefore the person will see a specialist within 3-5 days, and the treatment no later than 3 weeks after the visit to a specialist ”, explains I. Drėgvienė.
However, according to her, although such a mechanism has been in operation for five years, not only patients but also some family doctors have not heard of it.
“In smaller regions, where oncology is very rare, not all physicians are aware of ‘green corridors.’ We have repeatedly heard from members of our association that their family doctor did not even mention such a procedure, so the patient was placed in the general queue. However, after explaining the situation, the problems were solved, ”says I. Drėgvienė.
However, the “green corridors” are not perfect, so the association is doing everything possible to expand the possibilities of the mechanism.
“This priority only works for the first time when cancer is suspected, but if a patient has relapsed after a while, they can no longer use the” green corridor “and must wait their turn to see a specialist together with everyone. That is why , we seek that this mechanism is expanded and also works in the event that the patient begins to feel the symptoms of relapse “, says the person in charge of” Blood “.
The changing attitude of pharmacists
It is no secret that a large part of the activities of the “Kraujas” association would not be possible without the support of companies producing drugs for oncological diseases. One of them is the global pharmaceutical company Takeda. However, as I. Drėgvienė says, today the pharmacy is no longer just a business that seeks to promote its products through financial support.
“Working with Takeda and other pharmaceutical companies, they are very satisfied with their approach to the association’s activities. If some 15 years ago medicines and their brochures were seen as support, now this attitude has completely changed. Drug manufacturers they have gone from mere sponsors to social partners ”, says the interlocutor.
According to her, companies not only provide medicines, but also help organize various social projects, contribute to education and dissemination of information.
“There is no longer interest in supporting the project only if it is useful to them, now pharmacists are even supporting projects that have nothing to do with them, such as the aforementioned” Be Good “initiative, or contributing to the publication of educational publications where you will not find any of them. It is a social partnership, mutual respect and knowledge of the work of our organization ”, says I. Drėgvienė.
