"I don't want justice, but I want to practice justice for the future": she knew her hopes were slim, but she decided to fight for others. Maria Cristina Gallo, the 56-year-old teacher from Mazara del Vallo, who reported receiving the histology report that diagnosed her with a serious cancer eight months late, died this morning.
The complaint
"The harm has already been done," he said when he decided to go public with his case. "My fight is neither resentment nor anger, but a way to change things so that we can guarantee efficient healthcare for our children in the future."
Despite being exhausted by treatment, she never gave up in the final months of her life. Her complaints sparked an investigation that revealed the inefficiencies and delays that paralyzed the Trapani Health Authority for years. The teacher's case is not isolated. At least three people have reportedly died of cancer after their histology results were delivered late, and at least six patients were victims of the delays.
The investigation
A medical malpractice case, therefore, that has led the Trapani Public Prosecutor's Office to investigate 19 people, including doctors, laboratory technicians, and nurses. In addition to manslaughter, the suspects are charged with negligent injury and failure to perform official duties. The injured parties are multiple: six patients, the families of the three deceased patients, the Trapani Health Authority, and the Regional Health Department.
During the evidentiary hearing, which took place before the investigating judge on September 26, experts were appointed to determine whether the delays in submitting the medical reports had, as the defense claims, worsened the patients' clinical conditions or contributed to their deaths. At the same hearing, investigating judge Corleo rejected the motion by Niccolò Grossi, Gallo's attorney, to hold the ASP civilly liable, and therefore not among the victims, but among those to be prosecuted.
The disorganization
Ministerial and regional inspectors , who conducted parallel investigations into the matter, highlighted serious organizational problems within the Trapani Health Authority's Pathology Department: the computerized tracking system never became operational, and there were no protocols for managing the backlog.
The investigation concerns a backlog of over 3,300 reports from the hospitals of Trapani and Castelvetrano, which accumulated between 2024 and 2025 and has revealed a systemic crisis in Trapani's healthcare management.
Who was Maria Cristina Gallo?
Maria Cristina Gallo, who graduated in History and Philosophy and Theology, taught Italian at the R. D'Altavilla Industrial Technical Institute in Mazara del Vallo.
She had a great passion for children and collaborated with the Diocese by founding the children's library "Neverland." She leaves behind her husband, Giorgio Tranchida, and two sons: Vincenzo, 25, a police officer, and a 17-year-old student. "Cristina has left us. She was a loving mother, an exemplary wife, a loving teacher. She was a relentless fighter," wrote Giorgio Mulè, Deputy Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, on social media, who raised the issue months ago. Meanwhile, Carlo Calenda, leader of the Azione party, pointed the finger at the regional government, which he said was interested "only in dividing up healthcare positions."
Cristina Gallo's funeral will be held tomorrow at 10:30 a.m. in the Cathedral of Mazara del Vallo. "She was a woman who cared about her neighbor," said Bishop Angelo Giurdanella, moved.