Stamina

Doctors diagnosed Italy’s first case of COVID-19 on February 21, 2020, and the country quickly became the ‘epicenter’ of the pandemic, with almost 1,000 people dying daily in March. By October, there had been more than 35,000 deaths. In March, the Italian government imposed a national lockdown, limiting movement, prohibiting social life and keeping contacts in the hospitals to the minimum, making professional caregivers the only human contact patients had. Thousands of Italians were completely alone in their homes, or on their deathbeds. As all these restrictions were being implemented, Luigi Cavanna, who heads the oncology department at Piacenza Hospital, made the decision to tackle the COVID-19 disease during the initial phase, in the same way as a patient's cancer would be treated. He cared for more than 365 patients and only a small percentage had to be hospitalized. Dr. Cavanna is living proof for the Italian Health Corps that he has true Nobel Peace Prize potential.