School of magic hospital for the boys of the Cancer Institute of Milan

You become wizard apprentices in the hospital. It is the latest adventure of the boys of the National Cancer Institute (Int) of Milan, which has been transformed for days into a school of illusionism. Directed by two exceptional masters: the magician Tittix and Raul Cremona, known for having played the role of various protagonists of this world, from the magician Oronzo to Silvano the magician of Milan. Hats, rubber bands and balls to help young patients rediscover the magic of life during treatment. The new path of the Youth Project was centered on this. Before Christmas, the boys designed their own magic cards, later produced in a special edition by Modiano, with kings doing chemo, queens wearing colored bandanas, infantry nurses and medical jokers. The initiative was very successful, so much so that the special cards, perfect as a summer pastime under the umbrella, were once again made available for purchase on the solidarity e-shop of the Bianca Garavaglia Association, which has supported the activities since 1987. of the Oncological Pediatrics of the Int. Then, in the following months, 27 young patients aged between 14 and 24 years (14 in treatment and 13 out of therapy) participated in a real magic and prestidigitation workshop, managed by the two professional magicians (the magician Tittix for 6 lessons and Cremona for the last meeting). The result of this experience was presented today, also thanks to a video. And to the testimonies of the boys. Like Marta who admits: “Only a short time ago I understood what magic is. I found myself spending a lot of time in a place that I thought was my biggest nightmare. That place has become my lifeline. magic is a place where I find myself safe, not judged by my limitations and defects, where I can express myself, where I know I am loved. I happened to feel this way at the Youth Project “. It was, says Andrea Ferrari, who is the creator and manager of the Youth Project, “an engaging path. The kids had fun learning tricks. The time spent together was a time of laughter, and this is already magic: laughter in a pediatric oncology ward. But, above all, time to share and tell, time to try again to cultivate amazement and wonder, to seek lightness even in such a delicate moment of their life “. The video clip, entitled ‘Come per magica’ and presented this morning in the Bonadonna room of the Int, wanted to tell about it. Led by Alice Patriccioli, who has collaborated for years in the Youth Project, and Matteo Silva, educator of the department, the young apprentices of illusionism have invented the story of a boy who decides to take part in the magic course to impress a girl whose is in love, they prepared the screenplay, they acted, they made the shots and chose the ones to edit.Born in 2011, the Youth Project supported by the Bianca Garavaglia Association is an integral part of the Int Oncological Pediatrics and is dedicated to adolescent patients and young adults with cancer, with the challenge of dealing not only with the disease, but with the lives of children, bringing their normality and strength into the hospital. “These guys – declares Marco Votta, president of the Int – tell their experience with courage and with a smile on their lips and are a source of inspiration and example for us”. The Youth Project, adds Carlo Nicora, Int director general, “proposes a multidisciplinary organization different from the usual standards, a new model of health culture. The hospital thus also becomes a place where beauty and art are brought, where culture, as well as a place where they are treated and cared for “. Adolescent patients, highlights Maura Massimino, director of the complex Pediatric Oncology Department of the Int,” need dedicated centers and projects capable of offering them all the indispensable global support so that their life is not completely suspended by the irruption of the disease in everyday life, but it is also necessary to face with determination the problem of the difficulty of accessing the centers and treatment protocols “. Every year in Italy 800 adolescents between 15 and 18 years of age get sick with cancer. The overall chances of cure are good, but it is imperative that patients are able to receive the right care, at the right times and in the right places. “With the same disease – concludes Ferrari – an adolescent is less likely to heal than a child. Sick adolescents are in a middle ground between two worlds, that of pediatric oncology and that of adult medical oncology; and sometimes this is paid for with the absence of dedicated protocols “.