5 Challenges for Cancer Patients during COVID19 Lockdown
What are the 5 Challenges for Cancer Patients during COVID19 Lockdown?
Did you at any given moment there are 2.25 million cancer patients in India? And that 7.5 lakh people die to do cancer every year?
With COVIS19 and the need for social distancing, there are new challenges faced by cancer patients. Dr. Somashekhar SP, Head of Oncology at Manipal Hospital in Bangalore and Dr. Manisha Singh, Associate Director of Mahavir Cancer Sansthan advise patients and the public on cancer care.
- Accessibility because of logistics shutdown to able to come to hospitals to get diagnosis and start treatment
- Finance and economical lockdown impacts cancer treatment. Cancer treatment is not cheap or easily accessible.
- 30% of death because of COVID are cancer patients
- 4 weeks window – most cancer patients have a 4 week window else there can be stage migration that would have adverse effects
- 7.5 lakh cancer deaths in a year. With issues such as points 1-3, this number can increase rapidly
How are hospitals combating cancer treatment emergencies?
- Early cancer – delay of 4 weeks has no impact, so do tele consultation. see if possible to put on hormone or chemo tablets
- Not emergency today but will become emergency after 4 weeks (i.e. stage 2 breast cancer) – schedule after lockdown
- Cannot be delayed – take necessary infection precautions and then procedure with treatment care
Read the guideline made by Indian Association of Surgical Oncology for COVID-19 situation:
https://iasoindia.in/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Official-IASO-COVID-19-Guidelines.pdf
