The study presented at the NCRI Festival also found that children diagnosed with Cancer during the pandemic’s initial wave were more likely to have been admitted to intensive care before their diagnosis.
It was believed by experts that the spread of Covid-19 will be difficult to handle as it may have many adverse effects on kids in different age groups. However, to their great surprise, only a few kids were impacted by the infection, and the cases of Cancer were also reduced in this phase. A group specialized in oncology has checked samples where the number of kids getting Cancer has been reduced significantly in this phase.
These findings imply that COVID-19 may have harmed early cancer detection in children and teenagers. A study of Cancer in adolescents and young people in England indicated that during the COVID-19 pandemic, fewer individuals were diagnosed.
The study was presented by Dr. Defne Saatci said: “Spotting Cancer early and starting treatment promptly gives children and young people the best chance of surviving. We already know that the COVID-19 pandemic led to worrying delays in diagnosis and treatment for many adults with Cancer, so we wanted to understand how the pandemic affected children’s cancer services.”
Three hundred eighty patients were determined to have a brain tumor, lymphoma, leukemia, sarcoma, or kidney tumor during the first wave, according to the researchers. This is around a 17 percent decrease from previous years.
They discovered that during the first COVID-19 wave, the average time between identification and treatment initiation was marginally shorter, but that kids were more than double as probable to be transferred to critical care before their Cancer is detected.
Dr. Saatci and her colleagues studied the numbers of different malignancies identified in children and young adults up to the age of 25 in the first wave of the pandemic, between 1 February and 15 August 2020, using a general practice database called QResearch.
They compared this to diagnoses made in the three pre-pandemic years during the same period. They also looked at how long it took for patients to be diagnosed and start treatment, as well as whether they were diagnosed after being admitted to intensive care.
Lead researcher Professor Julia Hippisley-Cox said: “We found that more children were admitted to intensive care before their cancer diagnosis during the pandemic. A possible explanation is that these children waited longer to see a doctor and therefore may have been more unwell at the time of their diagnosis.
Together with the lower numbers of cancer diagnoses in the first wave, this study suggests COVID-19 may have had a serious impact on early diagnosis in this group of patients.”
“As we recover from the pandemic, it’s vital that we get the diagnosis of cancer in children and young people back on track as quickly as possible.”
Pamela Kearns was not a part of the research. “We know that the COVID-19 epidemic had a severe effect on the health system as a whole and that cancer diagnosis in adults has suffered as a result,” she said.
This study implies that the pathway for cancer diagnosis in children and young people has been harmed, and we need to learn more about the causes, which are likely to be multi-factorial. The healthcare system must now prepare for the potential of a post-COVID increase in the number of children and adolescents requiring cancer treatment.
“There are good treatments available for the majority of children and young people with cancer, but early diagnosis is vital. Young people and parents who are worried about any symptoms should speak to a doctor promptly.”
