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// Maurizio Muscaritoli 1 , Simone Lucia 1 , Alessio Farcomeni 2 , Vito Lorusso 3 , Valeria Saracino 3 , Carlo Barone 4 , Francesca Plastino 4 , Stefania Gori 5 , Roberto Magarotto 5 , Giacomo Carteni 6 , Bruno Chiurazzi 6 , Ida Pavese 7 , Luca Marchetti 7 , Vittorina Zagonel 8 , Eleonora Bergo 8 , Giuseppe Tonini 9 , Marco Imperatori 9 , Carmelo Iacono 10 , Luigi Maiorana 10 , Carmine Pinto 11 , Daniela Rubino 11 , Luigi Cavanna 12 , Roberto Di Cicilia 12 , Teresa Gamucci 13 , Silvia Quadrini 13 , Salvatore Palazzo 14 , Stefano Minardi 14 , Marco Merlano 15 , Giuseppe Colucci 16 and Paolo Marchetti 17, 18 , on behalf of the PreMiO Study Group 19 1 Department of Clinical Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy 2 Department of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy 3 Department of Medical Oncology, National Cancer Research Centre Giovanni Paolo II, Bari, Italy 4 Department of Medical Oncology, Catholic University of Sacred Heart, Largo A. Gemelli, Rome, Italy 5 Medical Oncology Unit, Ospedale Sacro Cuore Don Calabria, Verona, Italy 6 Oncology Unit, Antonio Cardarelli Hospital, Naples, Italy 7 Oncology Unit, San Pietro Fatebenefratelli Hospital, Rome, Italy 8 Department of Clinical and Experimental Oncology, Medical Oncology 1, Veneto Institute of Oncology IOV - IRCCS, Padua, Italy 9 Department of Oncology, University Campus Bio-Medico of Rome, Rome, Italy 10 Department of Medical Oncology, Azienda Ospedaliera Civile - Maria Paterno Arezzo, Ragusa, Italy 11 Medical Oncology, Clinical Cancer Centre, IRCCS-Arcispedale S. Maria Nuova, Reggio Emilia, Italy 12 Department of Oncology-Hematology, Guglielmo da Saliceto Hospital, Piacenza, Italy 13 Medical Oncology Unit, S.S. Trinita Hospital, Sora, Italy 14 Division of Medical Oncology, Mariano Santo Hospital, Azienda Ospedaliera, Cosenza, Italy 15 Medical Oncology, Oncology Department, S. Croce & Carle Teaching Hospital, Cuneo, Italy 16 Medical Oncology Department, National Cancer Research Centre Giovanni Paolo II, Bari, Italy 17 Department of Clinical and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Psychology Sapienza, St. Andrea Hospital, Rome, Italy 18 IDI-IRCCS, Rome, Italy 19 The PreMiO Study group also included investigators who contributed to patients’ enrollment Correspondence to: Maurizio Muscaritoli, email: maurizio.muscaritoli@uniroma1.it Keywords: malnutrition, cancer, cachexia, sarcopenia, oncology Received: April 27, 2017 Accepted: June 20, 2017 Published: August 10, 2017 ABSTRACT Background: In cancer patients, malnutrition is associated with treatment toxicity, complications, reduced physical functioning, and decreased survival. The Prevalence of Malnutrition in Oncology (PreMiO) study identified malnutrition or its risk among cancer patients making their first medical oncology visit. Innovatively, oncologists, not nutritionists, evaluated the nutritional status of the patients in this study. Methods: PreMiO was a prospective, observational study conducted at 22 medical oncology centers across Italy. For inclusion, adult patients (>18 years) had a solid tumor diagnosis, were treatment-naive, and had a life expectancy >3 months. Malnutrition was identified by the Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA), appetite status with a visual analog scale (VAS), and appetite loss with a modified version of Anorexia-Cachexia Subscale (AC/S-12) of the Functional Assessment of Anorexia-Cachexia Therapy (FAACT). Findings: Of patients enrolled ( N= 1,952), 51% had nutritional impairment; 9% were overtly malnourished, and 43% were at risk for malnutrition. Severity of malnutrition was positively correlated with the stage of cancer. Over 40% of patients were experiencing anorexia, as reported in the VAS and FAACT questionnaire. During the prior six months, 64% of patients lost weight (1–10 kg). Interpretation: Malnutrition, anorexia, and weight loss are common in cancer patients, even at their first visit to a medical oncology center.

Mediterranean Diet (MD) is currently considered one of the most healthy dietary models worldwide. It is generally based on the daily intake of fruit and vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts, fish, white meats, and olive oil. It may also include moderate consumption of fermented dairy products, a low intake of red meat, and red/white wine during the main course. Even if the effect of MD on cancer prevention as well as on human metabolic and cardiovascular balance has been discussed, including the quality of life of the exposed population, the putative effects on mental health are still not properly investigated. This narrative review reports on some emerging pieces of evidence on the possible impact of MD on general health and the outcome of psychiatric disorders (e.g., major depression, anxiety) and encourages further studies to test the benefits of healthy food selection on the health of the general population.

Crowdfunding has become a popular form of collective funding, in which small donations or investments, made by groups of people, support the development of new projects in exchange of free products or different types of recognition. Social network sites, on the other hand, promote user cooperation and currently are at the basis of any individuals cyber-interactions. In this paper, we present LikeStarter, a blockchain-based decentralized platform that combines social interactions with crowdfunding mechanisms, allowing any user to raise funds while becoming popular in the social network. Being built over the Ethereum blockchain, LikeStarter is structured as a Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO), that fosters crowdfunding without the intervention of any central authority, and recognizes the active role of donors, enabling them to support artists or projects, while making profits., Proceedings of the 2st Workshop on Cryptocurrencies and Blockchains for Distributed Systems (CryBlock'19). Paris, France, 29 April, 2019