Researchers led by Dr. Federica Teglia of the University of Bologna wrote that this and other types of cancer screening may be related to an increase in the number of preventable cancer deaths that could be seen in the future, as well as other possible consequences. .
“Disruption of cancer screening could delay the diagnosis of tumors, leading to a shift to more advanced stages in the diagnosis,” Teglia and colleagues wrote. “In addition, this could be associated with an increase in preventable cancer deaths, aggravate patients’ discomfort and disease burden, and be associated with a higher workload for medical staff and increased costs for the system. health care “.
Estimates say that by 2020, there were 19.3 million new cases of cancer and 10 million deaths from breast, colorectal and cervical cancer. These are the first, third and seventh most prevalent cancers in the world, respectively.
At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, non-emergency medical services were briefly halted, disrupting cancer screening programs. Although these measures likely reduced COVID-19 transmission, the study authors wrote that the association between the pause of medical services and public health needs to be determined.
Teglia et al wanted to analyze the impact of the COVID pandemic on cancer screening worldwide during the confinement period, focusing on breast, colorectal, and cervical cancers. They analyzed 39 studies published between January 2020 and December 2021 and analyzed the screening figures between January and October 2020, in addition to comparing these figures with the previous year.
The researchers found that the average decrease in breast cancer detection worldwide was 46.7%, compared to pre-COVID-19 figures, and the maximum decrease in detection occurred in the world. April 2020 (74.3%).
The number of breast screening breaks in North America decreased by 44.6% during the study period, including a maximum decrease of 86.7% observed in April. That was when new cases of COVID were being reported at a rapid pace and public health measures began to have more effect. However, more stable figures were recorded for the summer and autumn of 2020, with a decrease of 0.8% from June to October.
The team also found that Europe and South America had an average decrease in breast cancer screening of 67.7% and 51.1%, respectively. The study authors wrote that the largest decline in reported mammograms in Europe could be because breast screening is usually performed as part of the public health system, while mammograms are usually done through private health insurance. in the US.
Decrease in the overall volume of cancer screening during the COVID-19 pandemic Type of disease Decrease in mean volume Screening for cervical cancer 51.8% Breast cancer 46.7% Colorectal cancer 44.9% The period of study is from January to October 2020
The researchers also found global decreases in colorectal and cervical cancer screening. Although cervical cancer screening recovered as did breast cancer screening, the decrease in colorectal screening persisted during the fall months of 2020.
“We have identified a similar pattern by period for breast and colorectal cancer screening, with a U-shaped trend with a negative peak in April 2020 and an attenuation in May,” they added. “This trend was largely attributed to blockade measures in numerous countries and territories around the world.”
The study authors wrote that other factors may have contributed to reducing the number of controls beyond public safety measures to temporarily stop services. These include orders to stay home, fears of infection, avoiding non-urgent medical treatments and care, limited access to in-person medical examinations, and reorganization of hospital departments.
The researchers called for more studies on the diagnosis of cancer and the treatment of cancer during the pandemic.
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