Ürün, Y., Hussain, S.A. orcid.org/0000-0003-1552-511X, Bakouny, Z. et al. (13 more authors) (2020) Survey of the impact of COVID-19 on oncologists’ decision making in cancer. Jco Global Oncology, 6. pp. 1248-1257. ISSN 2687-8941
Abstract
PURPOSE
To understand readiness measures taken by oncologists to protect patients and health care workers from the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and how their clinical decision making was influenced by the pandemic.
METHODS
An online survey was conducted between March 24 and April 29, 2020.
RESULTS
A total of 343 oncologists from 28 countries participated. The median age was 43 years (range, 29-68 years), and the majority were male (62%). At the time of the survey, nearly all participants self-reported an outbreak in their country (99.7%). Personal protective equipment was available to all participants, of which surgical mask was the most common (n = 308; 90%). Telemedicine, in the form of phone or video encounters, was common and implemented by 80% (n = 273). Testing patients with cancer for COVID-19 via reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction before systemic treatment was not routinely implemented: 58% reported no routine testing, 39% performed testing in selected patients, and 3% performed systematic testing in all patients. The most significant factors influencing an oncologist’s decision making regarding choice of systemic therapy included patient age and comorbidities (81% and 92%, respectively). Although hormonal treatments and tyrosine kinase inhibitors were considered to be relatively safe, cytotoxic chemotherapy and immune therapies were perceived as being less safe or unsafe by participants. The vast majority of participants stated that during the pandemic they would use less chemotherapy, immune checkpoint inhibitors, and steroids. Although treatment in neoadjuvant, adjuvant, and first-line metastatic disease was less affected, most of the participants stated that they would be more hesitant to recommend second- or third-line therapies in metastatic disease.
CONCLUSION
Decision making by oncologists has been significantly influenced by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2020 by American Society of Clinical Oncology. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
Keywords: | Adult; Aged; Betacoronavirus; COVID-19; Clinical Decision-Making; Coronavirus Infections; Female; Humans; Infection Control; Infectious Disease Transmission, Patient-to-Professional; Infectious Disease Transmission, Professional-to-Patient; Male; Medical Oncology; Middle Aged; Neoplasms; Oncologists; Pandemics; Personal Protective Equipment; Pneumonia, Viral; Practice Patterns, Physicians'; SARS-CoV-2; Surveys and Questionnaires; Telemedicine |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Sheffield Teaching Hospitals |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 11 May 2022 14:10 |
Last Modified: | 14 May 2022 16:04 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | American Society of Clinical Oncology |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1200/go.20.00300 |
Related URLs: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:186637 |
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Filename: Survey of the Impact of COVID-19 on Oncologists Decision Making in Cancer.pdf
Licence: CC-BY 4.0