FIVE UNIVERSITY DEGREES IN 3 MONTHS TO DEFEAT THE TUMORS OF THE GASTROINTESTINAL TRACT: SAMUELE CANNAS, HONOUR STUDENT OF THE UNIVERSITY OF PISA AND THE SANT'ANNA SCHOOL, IS THE FIRST AND ONLY ITALIAN STUDENT TO HAVE 6 UNIVERSITY DEGREES AT THE EARLY AGE
Six university degrees with full marks and honors at the age of 25. This is the latest amazing accomplishment of Samuele Cannas, an honor student of both the University of Pisa and the Sant’ Anna School, who obtained his sixth Master’s Degree in Medical Sciences on Monday 20th December with full marks, summa cum laude and the unparalleled Honorable Mention. He discussed a thesis on “Step-By-Step Insight in Robotic Pancreatic Surgery: from Avant-Garde Minimally Invasive Techniques to a Novel Assessment of the Corresponding Learning Curves” under the guidance of Professor Ugo Boggi and Professor Fabio Anastasio Recchia, his tutor at the Sant’ Anna School. Samuele has achieved such degree with an unprecedented average grade of 30/30 summa cum laude (A+), ranking first in his whole class. Most amazingly, this is Samuele’s sixth university Master’s Degree, following the 4 additional degrees in Medicine and Surgery, Biotechnologies, Biomedical Engineering and Molecular Biotechnologies at the University of Pisa, as well as his Master’s degree in Piano, obtained in 2017 at the Music Conservatory “G.P. da Palestrina” of Cagliari with the grade of 10/10 summa cum laude, under the supervision of Professor Gabriella Mereu.
Such a diverse and interdisciplinary mission was born not for the sake of records - Samuele is the first Italian student to have 6 university degrees at the age of 25, all with full marks and honorable mention - but to achieve a specific professional goal: mastering the new and emerging use of robotics in abdominal surgery, focusing on the tumors of the gastrointestinal system, with a particular reference to pancreatic and hepatic malignancies.
“I could never have found a more stimulating and more enriching environment than that of the Pisan university system, where I had the privilege to carry on my battle against the surgical pathologies of the gastrointestinal tract, which represent a huge social and healthcare problem nowadays. - said Samuele Cannas, who, in three months, will be continuing his studies in HPB surgery in the USA - I would like to express my deepest gratitude to the University of Pisa and the Sant’ Anna School, whose support has never been lacking, especially during the darkest moments of the pandemic crisis. I have an infinite gratitude and a visceral attachment to my Country, Italy, where I am proud to have had the very high honor of growing up and pursuing my dreams. In whatever institution I am going to further continue my education, I will always remain deeply attached to my Nation and I will always work for it. Don't call me part of the brain drain. This phenomenon presupposes a definitive farewell, while mine is simply a see you soon!”.
“Our country needs passionate students with a strong will to pursue their dreams like Samuele and, before him, Giulio Deangeli. - commented the Rector of the University of Pisa, Professor Paolo Mancarella - Achieving six degrees in so little time at such a young age is not a simple mission, especially in a university so selective and prestigious as ours. Out-of-the-ordinary dedication and self-denial are required. But it is in such extraordinary stories that our scholars can find the inspiration and the strength to fulfill their projects and build the future they deserve”.
“The community of the Sant’ Anna School - said the Rector of the Sant’ Anna School, Professor Sabina Nuti - is proud of the unparalleled results achieved by Samuele Cannas. Samuele's commitment, tenacity and enthusiasm are a testimony that excellent results can be achieved and that the propensity and the proactive search for interdisciplinarity can arise very early in the environments that facilitate it. Samuele's success can be an encouragement for many other young people to continue their studies, putting their knowledge at the service of their community”.
Already a member of the Aspen Institute and honored with the title of Ensign of the Republic conferred by the Italian President Sergio Mattarella as one of the 25 best Italian students, Samuele Cannas has recently been awarded with many prestigious world-renowned prizes, including the Socrates Award 2021, the Italian Excellence Award 2021, the Young Italian Award 2021 and the Distinction of Merit from the Prefecture of Cagliari. Samuele cultivated his dream of becoming a surgeon from an early age. This is why, in 2015, he arrived in Pisa and engaged himself in a multidisciplinary path designed in a meticulous way.
As Samuele himself explained, the degree in Medicine provided him with the bases and the clinical sensitivities imperative to adequately interpret the pathological phenomenon, while the degree in Engineering will guarantee him the mathematical skills necessary to translate robotics into the surgical field. Finally, the two degrees in Biotechnology will allow him to immerse himself in the molecular world of gastrointestinal pathologies. Furthermore, Samuele owes music the ability to listen to the other and to listen to himself, as well as his devotion to the achievement of maximum detail and technical refinement, essential in the surgical world. At a glance, an indivisible synthesis, emblem of the multidisciplinarity that the University of Pisa and the Sant’ Anna School have been long nurturing.
On the cover: Samuele Cannas in the Great Historic Hall of the Sant’ Anna School, where he discussed his sixth Master’s Degree.
