PolmoniAMO_INGL

20 This Manifesto is the joint undertaking of clinicians involved in the care of lung can- cer patients on a daily basis and is intended to serve as a platform for the variety of spe- cialists (oncologists, pulmonologists, thoracic surgeons, endoscopists, radiologists, gen- eral practitioners) with whom patients come into contact along the treatment pathway. This manifesto aims to promote: a. a cultural shift in public opinion, policy makers and healthcare institutions by raising their awareness of the need to implement lung cancer screening programmes; b the construction of an efficient collaborative model for the early detection of lung cancer by raising stakeholder awareness of the importance of screening and by implementing a pathway that provides tools and resources for the roll-out of nationwide screening programmes; a) Supporting cultural change by: • Reducing stigma Reintroducing lung cancer back onto healthcare planning agendas and into conversa- tions about cancer will require initiatives to reduce the social stigma historically asso- ciated with this disease. This will involve learning to consider smoking not just as a bad habit but as a real addiction and not as a personal choice for which the public, or in some cases even clinicians, feel justified in blaming smokers. Although smoking is the leading cause of lung cancer in statistical terms, it is also nec- essary to broaden perspectives on the multiplicity of factors that may contribute to the onset of lung cancer, including genetic predisposition, exposure to contaminants such as radon or asbestos, and passive smoking. We hope that the opinion that the disease is a kind of punishment to be atoned for by smokers is left in the past. Indeed, stigma is the greatest obstacle between patients and their life expectancy. Reducing stigma would lessen the isolation and shame felt by many patients and their loved ones and raise awareness of the importance of taking advantage of the right to access diag- nosis and treatment for oneself and for those who may be future patients. A patient who is no longer a mere recipient of care but who gains a new role, that of an advocate for greater knowledge of the disease he or she has. A more actively involved patient could thus become an ‘asset’ for his or her community, helping transform the percep- tion of lung cancer patients from ‘extremely negative’ to ‘finally positive’. Increased in- volvement of individuals at risk of developing lung cancer due to age and tobacco expo- sure has the potential to transform them from mere targets of anti-smoking campaigns to active promoters of their own health and that of their communities. It is worth noting that when patients are actively mobilised and manage to make their voices heard at the political level, more funding is given to scientific research. For example, breast cancer and prostate cancer have similar mortality rates, yet the latter receives less than half the funding allocated to the former (USD 41 million vs. USD 102 million according to data from the American Cancer Society). These figures demonstrate how the efforts of