MORBIDITY AND MORTALITY ANALYSIS IN PATIENTS ACQUIRING COVID-19 FOLLOWING MAJOR ONCOLOGICAL SURGERY IN A TERTIARY CANCER CARE CENTRE

Abstract

Introduction : SARS CoV-2 infection has been creating havoc in the world since it was first detected and reported in Wuhan, China in December, 2019. It gradually spread all over the world and became an international emergency. No age is immune to this virus and can affect anyone. Some carriers may be asymptomatic and may act as a potential source of infection. Cancer patients are considered to be a high risk group for contracting this infection with a higher morbidity and mortality. This article analyses the impact and outcome of COVID-19 after major oncological resections. Methods : A retrospective analysis on the morbidity and outcome of COVID-19 in cancer patients after major oncological resections were done from a prospectively maintained database. They were studied from 16th July, 2020 to 30th September, 2020. All surgical candidates underwent a mandatory RTPCR test for COVID-19 pre-operatively. Only the surgical cases who were pre-operatively negative for COVID-19 and then became positive in the post-operative period were taken for analysis. Results : A total of 299 major oncological surgeries were performed during the period of study. Out of these, 10 cases developed COVID-19 in the post-operative period and were taken up for the study. 7 out of the 10 cases were head and neck oncological resections. 4 cases had taken neo-adjuvant chemotherapy before surgery. 2 of the cases died which had probable handling of the aero-digestive tract as a part of the oncological resections. Conclusion : Cancer care has to continue even in the midst of an ongoing pandemic . Hence, identification of the factors which might increase the vulnerability of these patients are important so that extra care can be taken to protect them.