Abstract
BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic is predicted to significantly affect patients with lung cancer, owing to its rapid progression and high mortality. Studies on lung cancer diagnosis and treatment during an epidemic are lacking. We analyzed the impact of COVID-19 on lung cancer diagnosis in Korea, where lung cancer incidence continues to rise.MethodsThe number of newly diagnosed lung cancer cases in three university-affiliated hospitals during the pandemic and their clinical features were compared with lung cancer cases diagnosed during the same period in the past 3 years. The effectiveness of measures taken by the study hospitals to prevent nosocomial transmission was reviewed.ResultsA total of 612 patients were diagnosed with lung cancer from February through June, 2017–2020. During the pandemic, the number of patients who sought consultation at the division of pulmonology of study hospitals dropped by 16% from the previous year. Responding to the pandemic, the involved hospitals created physically isolated triage areas for patients with acute respiratory infection symptoms. Wide-range screening and preventive measures were implemented, thus minimizing the delay in lung cancer diagnosis. No patient acquired COVID-19 due to hospital exposure. The proportion of patients with stage III–IV non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) significantly increased (2020: 74.7% vs. 2017: 57.9%, 2018: 66.7%, 2019: 62.7%, p = 0.011). The number of lung cancers diagnosed during this period and the previous year remained the same.ConclusionsThe proportion of patients with advanced NSCLC increased during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Highlights
The COVID-19 pandemic is predicted to significantly affect patients with lung cancer, owing to its rapid progression and high mortality
Data of 169 patients with lung cancer diagnosed during the COVID-19 pandemic between February and June 2020 and 443 patients diagnosed between February and June during 2017–2019 were analyzed (Table 1)
The number of pulmonology outpatients at the study hospital dropped by 16% from the previous year
Summary
The COVID-19 pandemic is predicted to significantly affect patients with lung cancer, owing to its rapid progression and high mortality. Studies on lung cancer diagnosis and treatment during an epidemic are lacking. We analyzed the impact of COVID-19 on lung cancer diagnosis in Korea, where lung cancer incidence continues to rise. Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARSCoV-2), first discovered in Wuhan, China, spread throughout neighboring Asian countries and has become a global pandemic [1]. Park et al BMC Cancer (2020) 20:1040 the number of brain imaging tests performed to diagnose stroke dropped by 39% during the COVID-19 pandemic. A study reported that hospital admissions due to acute myocardial infarction declined by 48% [3, 4]. The incidence of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest reportedly increased [5]. The decrease in the number of cancer diagnoses was observed and can be attributed to both presentational delay (the reduced number of patients seeking consult in healthcare facilities or referrals from primary clinics) and delays in the diagnostic process
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