Adnkronos Rome, November 17 (Adnkronos Salute) – "The first problem a patient with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy faces is often the diagnosis. When it arrives, it triggers a moment of fear: it's understandable, because the person searches for information online and immediately encounters the potential complications of the disease. Furthermore, they are informed that cardiomyopathy may have a genetic component in their family.
This generates further concern, not only for themselves but also for their children." This is what Franco Cecchi, president of Aicarm Aps (Italian Cardiomyopathy Association), told Adnkronos Salute today in Rome at the press conference announcing AIFA's approval of the reimbursement of mavacamten for the treatment of symptomatic hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy (HOC) (class II-III according to the NYHA classification) in adult patients for whom standard therapy is insufficient.
"However, it is almost always the symptoms that lead to the diagnosis. The most common," Cecchi points out, "involve difficulty performing even moderate physical activity: climbing stairs, for example, becomes tiring. Other patients complain of palpitations, which can be simple extrasystoles or more serious arrhythmias, such as atrial fibrillation. Then there are those who experience chest pain that is different from that typical of ischemia: a more oppressive pain that lasts longer and can appear at any time, even at rest." These symptoms "compromise the quality of life. The good news," Cecchi emphasizes, "is that today we have a range of established drugs, which will soon be joined by new, innovative therapies in Italy as well. These treatments, like the one approved by AIFA, significantly improve survival and quality of life, and reduce the very symptoms that led to the diagnosis."