We must inspire and awaken vocations to future generations of researchers and scientists””
The director of the Biosanitary Research Institute of Granada, María José Sánchez, investigates cancer
The UNESCO General Assembly decided in December 2015 to establish February 11 as International Day of Women and Girls in Science, in order to achieve their "full and equitable access and participation", since it is estimated that less than 30 percent of scientific researchers in the world are women. One of them, Maria Jose Sanchez Perez She is the director of the Biosanitary Research Institute of Granada.
He affirms that the meaning of this February 11 is to give visibility to the group of researchers, their professional lives and the challenges they face in research. «I think it is very important to make visible the role of women in science, in addition to inspiring and awaken vocations to future generations of researchers and scientists ", says Sánchez Pérez, who is also Director of the Granada Cancer Registry at the Andalusian School of Public Health (EASP).
Degree in Medicine from the University of Granada, is Microbiology specialist and received a research grant in an international project on Human Papillomavirus and Oral Cavity Cancer at EASP. "Being part of a project of these characteristics allowed me to participate in all phases of the research process," he explains. He continued his training in Cancer Epidemiology and Clinical Research and found that his true vocation was cancer research, "he explains. It emphasizes that working in a multidisciplinary research group of international scope opened doors in the field of research and since 2009 leads a research group of national and international excellence.
Effects of the pandemic
«We live in a deep health and public health crisis since Covid-19 broke into our lives ”, affirms the scientist, one of the ten best in Spain in the area of Oncology. «Clearly the Covid-19 pandemic has slowed down and has had a huge impact on cancer research, on many levels. Doctors and other health professionals have prioritized assistance, ahead of research, how could it be otherwise. On the other hand, the patients did not want to participate in clinical trials for safety reasons, ”emphasizes Sánchez, who emphasizes that the number of patients has decreased. basic cancer research, since in the first wave «many research centers closed and research in laboratories and research centers had to be stopped». “In the same way, translational and applied research, as well as clinical and clinical trials, has decreased. Even the inclusion of new patients in the trials was stopped. '
This situation has affected cancer patients themselves, as evidenced by a study that has just been published by the Spanish Association for the Fight Against Cancer, in collaboration with various scientific societies, such as the Spanish Society of Medical Oncology (SEOM) or the Spanish Society of Radiation Oncology (LORD), among others. «The pandemic has aggravated the situation of inequality and vulnerability of the cancer population. One in five cancer patients has been undiagnosed or diagnosed late in confinement. People have seen fewer visits, fewer Pap tests, fewer biopsies and, therefore, fewer cases of cancer have been diagnosed than are commonly diagnosed, which will undoubtedly cause these people to be diagnosed in more advanced stages of the disease and have a worse survival ", emphasizes the doctor, who remarks that" the pandemic has also had a negative impact, at a social, psychological and economic level in cancer patients who, in themselves, are already vulnerable people.
«This pandemic has exacerbated lacks that we had in the Health System, but patients and people must be encouraged to lose their fear if they need it and consult a Primary or Hospital Care professional. At the moment, going to the hospital is safe. Fear cannot paralyze us, "he warns.
María José Sánchez emphasizes that “cancer kills more than Covid-19. If we are able to make a early detection of cancer, we will be able to reduce mortality and increase their quality of life ", asserts the researcher, who points out that" Covid is clearly a priority, but cancer and other diseases such as cardiovascular ones…. They have not disappeared and we cannot abandon them, nor silence them. We are experiencing a global pandemic.