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. 2020 Sep:136:132-139.
doi: 10.1016/j.ejca.2020.06.019. Epub 2020 Jul 4.

Impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic on cancer treatment: the patients' perspective

K de Joode  1 , D W Dumoulin  2 , V Engelen  3 , H J Bloemendal  4 , M Verheij  5 , H W M van Laarhoven  6 , I H Dingemans  3 , A C Dingemans  7 , A A M van der Veldt  8
Affiliations

Impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic on cancer treatment: the patients' perspective

K de Joode et al. Eur J Cancer. 2020 Sep.

Abstract

Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, has inevitable consequences for medical care of patients without COVID-19. To assess the impact of this pandemic on oncological care, a nationwide survey was conducted among patients with cancer in the Netherlands.

Methods: The patients' perspective on oncological care was investigated using an online survey between March 29th 2020 and April 18th 2020. The survey consisted of 20 questions on four topics: patients' characteristics, contact with the hospital, consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic and concerns about COVID-19.

Results: Five thousand three hundred two patients with cancer completed this nationwide survey. Overall, 30% of patients reported consequences for their oncological treatment or follow-up. In the majority of cases, this resulted in conversion from hospital visit to consultation by phone or video. The most frequently adjusted treatments were chemotherapy (30%) and immunotherapy (32%). Among patients with delay and discontinuation of treatment, 55% and 63% of patients, respectively, were (very) concerned about these consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. Consequences were independent of regional differences in COVID-19 incidence. However, patients in regions with high COVID-19 incidence were significantly more concerned.

Conclusion: This is the first study investigating perspectives of patients with cancer during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study demonstrates the significant impact of the COVID-19 crisis on oncological care, indicating the need for psycho-oncological support during this pandemic.

Keywords: COVID-19; Cancer; Coronavirus; Pandemic; Patients' perspective.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest statement D.W.D. reports receiving personal fees and speaker fee from MSD, Roche, AstaZeneca, BMS, Novartis and Pfizer, outside the submitted work. A.C.D. reports receiving personal fees from Roche, PharmaMar, Boehringer Ingelheim, Novartis, Takeda, Pfizer and Eli Lilly; grants from BMS and Amgen and non-financial support from Abbvie,grants fees outside the submitted work; A.A.M.v.d.V. reports receiving other grants from BMS, MSD, Merck, Pfizer, Ipsen, Eisai, Pierre Fabre, Roche, Novartis and Sanofi, outside the submitted work. All other authors report no conflict of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Number of patients with a positive test for SARS-CoV-2 in the Netherlands during the three-week period of the survey on (a) March 29th 2020 and (b) April 18th 2020. SARS-CoV-2 = severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Experienced consequences for treatment and follow-up visits of 4704 patients according to disease setting. Patients with ‘unknown’ disease setting were excluded. Patients answered whether they experienced consequences as ‘yes’, ‘not yet’ or ‘no’.
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Experienced consequences for treatment and follow-up visits of 5302 patients according to treatment setting. Patients answered whether they experienced consequences as ‘yes’, ‘not yet’, or ‘no’.
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Adjusted treatment (a; n = 213), postponed treatment (b; n = 406) and cancelled treatment (c; n = 58) according to treatment modality.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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