COVID-19 and Hematology Patients Final Blog
Take a look at the third and final blog post from our board president Jennie Goble on how the COVID-19 pandemic affects hematology patients:
The effects of COVID 19 are widespread and profound. The full impact on the health, economy, and politics of the world is yet to be determined. One thing is certain; the cancer patient population is one of the most devastated by this pandemic.
In addition to the psychological and social stress, COVID 19 has significantly impacted the health of cancer patients. When the virus was first identified, all non-emergent clinic and hospital encounters were deferred. This included routine cancer follow up appointments and non-emergent chemotherapy. Recently, hospitals and clinics have re-opened and have been trying to catch up on cancer visits. However, many patients experienced significant delays in their chemotherapy regimens. Some chemotherapy agents are given every few weeks or monthly and patients may have had to skip 1-3 months during this pandemic. Not only has this caused mental distress and worry, it has also caused a greater risk for complications and disease progression. Consistency is important in treatment; delays can increase the risk of cancer relapse. The full damage that has been caused by these delays in treatment is not yet revealed and more future research will be needed.
Patients with blood cancer, in particular, face the biggest challenge with COVID 19. They have a decreased immune system and less ability to fight infection. Statistics from China, Italy, and New York all indicate that patients with hematologic malignancies have a higher likelihood of severe illness and death from COVID 19. Risk of both ICU admission and mortality from COVID 19 are over 1.5 times higher for patients with cancer than the general population.
COVID 19 has been associated with increased blood clotting and increased bleeding. Cancer patients are already at an increased risk of blood clots due to the increased inflammation in their bodies. This combination has often contributed to the increased mortality of COVID 19 in cancer patients. Many hematology patients also have an increased risk of bleeding due to their disease and treatments. Combined with the bleeding risk of COVID 19, it becomes a very dangerous situation.
The increased medical risks during this pandemic are very real for patients with hematologic malignancies. If the small inconvenience of wearing a mask can decrease the transmission and save even one hematology patient from experiencing this deadly virus, then we will wear our masks diligently and request your help in doing the same.
