Project description:BackgroundThe influence of SARS-CoV-2 on surgery for non-small cell lung cancer needs to be understood to inform clinical decision making during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.ObjectiveThis study reports on the 90-day rate of infection as well as the morbidity and mortality of lung surgery for cancer in a tertiary care hospital located in a pandemic epicenter.MethodsWe conducted a retrospective review of a prospective database to identify consecutive patients who underwent lung cancer resection before (January 1, 2020-March 10, 2020, group 1; 57 patients) and during the COVID-19 pandemic (March 11, 2020-June 10, 2020, group 2; 41 patients). The primary end point was the occurrence of SARS-CoV-2 infection during the first 90-days after surgery. The secondary outcome measure was 90-day perioperative morbidity and mortality.ResultsPatient characteristics were not significantly different between the groups. Ninety-day COVID-19 infection rates was 7.3% (3 out of 41) for patients undergoing an operation during the pandemic and 3.5% (2 out of 57) in patients operated on immediately before the pandemic. All patients tested positive 10 to 62 days after the index surgical procedure following hospital discharge. Four COVID-19-positive patients were symptomatic and 4 out of 5 patients required hospitalization, were men, previous or current smokers with hyperlipidemia, and underwent a sublobar resection. Univariate analysis did not identify any differences in postoperative complications before or during the COVID-19 pandemic. Ninety-day mortality was 5% (2 out of 41) for lung cancer surgery performed during the pandemic, with all deaths occurring due to COVID-19, compared with 0% (0 out of 57) mortality in patients who underwent an operation before the pandemic.ConclusionsDuring the COVID-19 pandemic, COVID-19 infections occurred in 7.3% of patients who underwent surgery for non-small cell lung cancer. In this series all infections occurred after hospital discharge. Our results suggest that COVID-19 infections occurring within 90 days of surgery portend a 40% mortality, warranting close postoperative surveillance.
Project description:BackgroundThe impact of COVID-19 has been felt in every field of medicine. We sought to understand how lung cancer surgery was affected at a high volume institution. We hypothesized that patients would wait longer for surgery, have more advanced tumors, and experience more complications during the COVID-19 crisis.MethodsA retrospective review was conducted, comparing pathologically confirmed non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) surgical cases performed in 2019 to cases performed from March to May 2020, during the height of the COVID-19 crisis. Clinical and pathologic stage, tumor size, time to surgery, follow up time, and complications were evaluated.ResultsA total of 375 cases were performed in 2019 vs. 58 cases in March to May 2020. Overall, there were no differences in the distribution of clinical stages or in the distribution of median wait times to surgery between groups (COVID-19 16.5 days vs. pre-COVID-19 17 days, P=0.54), nor were there differences when subdivided into Stage I-II and Stage III-IV. Case volume was lowest in April 2020 with 6 cases vs. 37 in April 2019, P<0.01. Tumor size was clinically larger in the COVID-19 group (median 2.1 vs. 1.9 cm, P=0.05) but not at final pathology. No differences in complications were observed between groups (COVID-19 31.0% vs. pre-COVID-19 30.9%, P=1.00). No patients from the COVID-19 group tested positive for the disease during their hospital stay or by the median 15 days to first follow-up.ConclusionsSurgical wait time, pathologic tumor size, and complications were not different among patients undergoing surgery before vs. during the pandemic. Importantly, no patients became infected as a result of their hospital stay. The significant decrease in surgical cases is concerning for untreated cancers that may progress without proper treatment.
Project description:This is a multi-centered, retrospective, observational study aimed at observing the current status of the management of gastrointestinal surgery during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly the changes on surgery protocols and other key aspects of surgical workflow, so as to share experience with colleagues both domestic and abroad.
Project description:Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic caused interruptions in the delivery of medical care across a wide range of conditions including cancer. Trends in surgical treatment for cancer during the pandemic have not been well described. We sought to characterize associations between the pandemic and access to surgical treatment for breast, colorectal, and lung cancer in Illinois. Methods We performed a retrospective cohort study evaluating inpatient admissions at Illinois hospitals providing surgical care for lung cancer (n=1913 cases, n=64 hospitals), breast cancer (n=910 cases, n=108 hospitals), and colorectal cancer (n=5339 cases, n=144 hospitals). Using discharge data from the Illinois Health and Hospital Association’s Comparative Health Care and Hospital Data Reporting Services database, average monthly surgical case volumes were compared from 2019 to 2020. We also compared rates of cancer surgery for each cancer type, by patient characteristics, and hospital type across the three time periods using Pearson chi-squared and ANOVA testing as appropriate. Three discrete time periods were considered: pre-pandemic (7-12/2019), primary pandemic (4-6/2020), and pandemic recovery (7-12/2020). Hospital characteristics evaluated included hospital type (academic, community, safety net), COVID-19 burden, and baseline cancer surgery volume. Results There were 2096 fewer operations performed for breast, colorectal, and lung cancer in 2020 than 2019 in Illinois, with the greatest reductions in cancer surgery volume occurring at the onset of the pandemic in April (colorectal, -48.3%; lung, -13.1%) and May (breast, -45.2%) of 2020. During the pandemic, breast (-14.6%) and colorectal (-13.8%) cancer surgery experienced reductions in volume whereas lung cancer operations were more common (+26.4%) compared to 2019. There were no significant differences noted in gender, race, ethnicity, or insurance status among patients receiving oncologic surgery during the primary pandemic or pandemic recovery periods. Academic hospitals, hospitals with larger numbers of COVID-19 admissions, and those with greater baseline cancer surgery volumes were associated with the greatest reduction in cancer surgery during the primary pandemic period (all cancer types, p<0.01). During the recovery period, hospitals with greater baseline breast and lung cancer surgery volumes remained at reduced surgery volumes compared to their counterparts (p<0.01). Conclusions The COVID-19 pandemic was associated with significant reductions in breast and colorectal cancer operations in Illinois, while lung cancer operations remained relatively consistent. Overall, there was a net reduction in cancer surgery that was not made up during the recovery period. Academic hospitals, those caring for more COVID-19 patients, and those with greater baseline surgery volumes were most vulnerable to reduced surgery rates during peaks of the pandemic and to delays in addressing the backlog of cases.
Project description:COVID-19 has had a detrimental effect on the provision of cancer surgery, but its impact beyond the first 6 months of the pandemic remains unclear. We used data on 799 220 cancer surgeries performed in Ontario, Canada, during 2018-2021 and segmented regression to address this knowledge gap. With the arrival of the first COVID-19 wave (March 2020), mean cancer surgical volume decreased by 57%. Surgical volume then rose by 2.5% weekly and reached prepandemic levels in 8 months. The surgical backlog after the first wave was 47 639 cases. At the beginning of the second COVID-19 wave (January 2021), mean cancer surgical volume dropped by 22%. Afterward, surgical volume did not actively recover (2-sided P = .25), resulting in a cumulative backlog of 66 376 cases as of August 2021. These data urge the strengthening of the surgical system to quickly clear the backlog in anticipation of a tsunami of newly diagnosed cancer patients in need of surgery.
Project description:BackgroundThe novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, caused the COVID-19 global pandemic. In response, the Australian and New Zealand governments activated their respective emergency plans and hospital frameworks to deal with the potential increased demand on scarce resources. Surgical triage formed an important part of this response to protect the healthcare system's capacity to respond to COVID-19.MethodA rapid review methodology was adapted to search for all levels of evidence on triaging surgery during the current COVID-19 outbreak. Searches were limited to PubMed (inception to 10 April 2020) and supplemented with grey literature searches using the Google search engine. Further, relevant articles were also sourced through the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons COVID-19 Working Group. Recent government advice (May 2020) is also included.ResultsThis rapid review is a summary of advice from Australian, New Zealand and international speciality groups regarding triaging of surgical cases, as well as the peer-reviewed literature. The key theme across all jurisdictions was to not compromise clinical judgement and to enable individualized, ethical and patient-centred care. The topics reported on include implications of COVID-19 on surgical triage, competing demands on healthcare resources (surgery versus COVID-19 cases), and the low incidence of COVID-19 resulting in a possibility to increase surgical caseloads over time.ConclusionDuring the COVID-19 pandemic, urgent and emergency surgery must continue. A carefully staged return of elective surgery should align with a decrease in COVID-19 caseload. Combining evidence and expert opinion, schemas and recommendations have been proposed to guide this process in Australia and New Zealand.