Emeritus Professor of Organic Chemistry, University of Pavia
Parkinson's Disease
Milan, Italy (Policlinico di Milano – Ospedale Maggiore)
"My name is Nicola. I will speak because Angelo has a phonation problem and cannot communicate as he would like. Angelo has been suffering from Parkinson's disease for 15 years. Angelo does not swallow well. He drinks gelled water. Angelo also does not walk well. He performs physical movements slowly. He has difficulty sitting properly and struggles to maintain correct posture. As our doctor defines it, Angelo suffers from general apraxia due to his disease.
Living nearby, we spend a lot of time in the park. We live together. Every Saturday morning, when it doesn't rain, after breakfast, we sit on a free bench and start reading aloud. It's something we both enjoy. In this case, I read, and Angelo listens. 'La Vita Agra' is an Italian novel by Luciano Bianciardi written in '62. The protagonist, leaving his life behind, along with his wife and child, moves to Milan intending to avenge the people who died in a mine accident that happened in that area. He will then meet a girl, and the story will become increasingly interesting.
Angelo tries to stay informed on topics related to chemistry and photochemistry. After a career as a professor in Pavia, he has never stopped dedicating himself to the subject he has always passionately studied and loved. Angelo spends most of his time at home in his study, continuing the scientific work of a lifetime. He still keeps in touch with the university, his old colleagues, and students, who, even with some difficulty, always try to stay close to him and spend some time together.
Angelo is, in fact, an emeritus professor of organic chemistry at the University of Pavia, where he spent and dedicated almost his entire educational career, except for a few years abroad.
Angelo was born in Milan. He has lived in Milan for most of his life, except for a few years spent in Canada for work. Angelo has been fortunate. He was able to combine his passion with his work: Chemistry. Photochemistry is his specialty, in which he has contributed to many manuscripts and publications, receiving notable merits and academic awards during his career. Angelo loves opera. Since he was a boy, he and his family often frequented the Teatro alla Scala. As a boy, he and his brother were passionate about philately. They both loved Italian history and literature.
Angelo has two children. They live far from home, one in Prague and the other in Sardinia. Finally, his grandson, born just a year ago, is a great source of joy.
Sixteen years ago, he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. Living with this disease, the first years passed relatively easily due to the effectiveness of the therapy that somehow managed to alleviate the symptoms. Angelo thus maintained full motor and sensory capacity, allowing him to continue traveling and working in his beloved field. The symptoms, in fact, did not yet show as heavily as in the following years.
After installing a DBS (Deep Brain Stimulation) device, which served to counteract the symptoms of Parkinson's, Angelo benefited from the effects of this device for many years. Working in Pavia, he was able, when things didn't go well, and symptoms like walking slowdowns or too many involuntary movements appeared, to go to the Parkinson's center, at the time the Mondini Institute in Pavia, where they helped him fix the situation.
Over the years, the situation worsened considerably. The symptoms became increasingly insidious, starting to hinder the lifestyle maintained until then.
Altered phonation, slurred speech, and a consistently very low voice began to prevent him from conducting normal lessons at the university. This was perhaps the greatest obstacle Angelo had to face. And then, not only did he exclude himself from teaching in Pavia, but he also began to isolate himself from conversations within the family, with his loved ones, because he was unable to communicate naturally.
Angelo defines the disease as that machine that turns you from an actor into a mere spectator of life. And, unfortunately, it also brings a lot of pain.
Along with the swallowing problem, there is also the issue of debilitating mouth, throat, and tongue movements. Angelo suffers from a problem called sialorrhea, which is altered saliva production. In this case, since it remains in his mouth due to the reasons mentioned earlier and the downward head tilt due to the disease, Angelo loses saliva from his mouth quite voluminously, sometimes requiring the use of a protective mask. The psycho-social complication for Angelo is considerable.
Angelo remains a person of tenacious spirit—with a tremendous will to live. Angelo shows today, as he did 16 years ago, the same determination to improve himself day by day, despite the disease."