Cancer Management and Research (Sep 2020)
The Landscape of COVID-19 in Cancer Patients: Prevalence, Impacts, and Recommendations
Abstract
Omar Abdihamid,1 Changjing Cai,1 Linda Kapesa,2 Shan Zeng1,3,4 1Department of Oncology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410008, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Oncology, Muhimbili National Hospital, Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania; 3National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Disorders, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410008, People’s Republic of China; 4Key Laboratory for Molecular Radiation Oncology of Hunan Province, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410008, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Shan ZengDepartment of Oncology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410008, People’s Republic of ChinaTel +86-13574846576Email [email protected]: Cancer patients are susceptible groups to COVID-19, and risk-adjusted models show that most cancer patients have a 25– 39% mortality risk if infected with COVID-19. The infection rate of SARS-CoV-2 in cancer patients in China was 0.79% (12 of 1524 patients; 95% CI, 0.31.2%). The case fatality rate of COVID-19 in the overall population ranges from 2.3 to 8.0%; among these, the case fatality rate for cancer patients is at 5.6%. In a retrospective cohort study of 28 COVID-19-infected cancer patients, a total of 15 (53.6%) patients had severe outcomes with a mortality rate of 28.6%. In a pooled analysis by Aakash et al, a 2% cancer prevalence was found among admitted patients with COVID-19. In Italy, a report shows that among the 3200 patients who died of SARS-CoV-2, 19.4% were patients with cancer. In New York, 61 (28%) cancer patients succumbed to COVID-19 with a case fatality rate of 37% (20/54) and 25% (41/164) for hematologic and solid malignancies, respectively. Impacts of COVID-19 in cancer care include interruptions of life-saving therapies, distraction effects, and diagnostic overshadowing that involve diverting attention to the pandemic rather than to cancer patients and disruptions of primary palliative care to patients due to forced quarantine. Herein, we review the landscape of COVID-19 in cancer care. We also briefly share our experience and the measures in place to protect cancer patients against COVID-19 in our center.Keywords: SARS-CoV-2, cancer care, high-risk, mortality
