Cancer & COVID-19 Safety
- In New Haven, CT, two visitors came to see to cancer patients and unknowingly passed the coronavirus on to them.
- People battling cancer during COVID-19, as well as their loved ones, must exercise more caution against the virus than others because cancer treatments may weaken immune systems.
- Cancer treatments during the pandemic have continued taking place, and some modifications have been made for patients whose care is less urgent.
Although the visitors were trying to do a kind thing, they unwittingly, likely, made the situation much worse. It happened at the end of October, and new rules have been put in place at the hospital since then, but it’s a good reminder that you can’t be too cautious especially when you’re visiting a friend to support them through an illness.
Read MoreBe Smart. Be Cautious
It’s really important to be particularly mindful of the overall health of anyone you may come in contact with, not just your desire to see loved ones who may be ill. While we are all missing our nearest and dearest right now, we need to collectively buckle down to try to slow the spread of the virus. Staying home is often the kindest, most thoughtful thing you can do for the important people in your life.People battling cancer must be extra-cautious during this time, and those closest to them should be extra-cautious, too. This may mean, as difficult as it is to hear, not visiting them in the hospital, or at home, so you don’t risk passing the virus on to them. Many people fighting cancer are in an immunocompromised state, due to the effect of certain cancer treatments, such as chemotherapy, have on the body.
COVID-19 Safety
Following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) safety guidelines for the COVID-19 pandemic is one of the best ways to protect yourself from the virus. The CDC recommends:
- Wash your hands often
- Avoid close contact with others
- Cover your mouth and nose with a mask
- Cover coughs and sneezes
- Clean and disinfect surfaces
While we’re all exercising safety and caution during COVID-19, it’s important though to still listen to your body if anything feels off. If you find a lump in your breast (a sign of breast cancer), or if you are experiencing jaundice (a sign of pancreatic cancer), or if there’s something that doesn’t seem right to you, you should contact your physician.
Related: A COVID-19 Vaccine May Be on the Way: What Those With Cancer Need to Know
Due to the pandemic, many have stayed away from hospitals during this time, if they’re able to do so. However, it’s important to still screen for cancer during COVID-19, because the earlier cancer is caught, the greater the treatment options and prognosis tend to be.
It's Important To Continue Cancer Screenings Through COVID-19
Cancer Treatment During the Pandemic
Dr. Kris Zanotti, a Gynecologic Oncologist at University Hospitals in Cleveland, spoke with SurvivorNet in an earlier interview about how the pandemic is affecting treatment for ovarian cancer. She said, “Cancer care has changed a lot since the COVID pandemic. The risk to a cancer patient is increased for not only acquiring the disease but becoming ill from the disease. So there’s been much debate regarding which patients can be safely deferred and which patients need to undergo their therapies during the COVID pandemic.”
Related: Should Cancer Patients Fly During a Pandemic? What You Need to Know
Dr. Zanotti told us that, when it comes to surgery for treating ovarian cancer during the pandemic, safety measures need to be thoroughly put in place. “So arguments about decision-making at the initial diagnosis of ovarian cancer have included debates about the safety of chemotherapy and the debates about the safety of surgery,” she said. “So when we consider surgery, we consider that although we test ahead of time for COVID, and we also keep the cancer centers very COVID-free, active COVID patients can not be in the Cancer Center. If there’s a suspected COVID patient, they are moved out of the Cancer Center.”
Related: Treating Ovarian Cancer During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Surgery is considered safe, according to Dr. Zanotti. However, because it is a “major intervention,” the consequences of a surgery patient contracting COVID would be “severe,” she said.
How the Pandemic Influences Ovarian Cancer Treatment Decisions
Healthcare Workers on the Frontline
During the pandemic, if you have a loved one fighting cancer, think not only of them in delaying or outright forgoing your hospital visit to see them, think also of the healthcare workers who are tirelessly fighting to treat this disease.
Related: Chemotherapy for Ovarian Cancer During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Dr. Elizabeth Comen, a Medical Oncologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, told SurvivorNet in a previous interview, “This time has highlighted what doctors and nurses and health care providers are doing for the world right now. I don’t think that there’s ever been another time in society where we’ve called people ‘health care heroes.’ And I really think that so many of them on the frontlines are.”
Dr. Comen said she hopes that the pandemic will underscore the importance of healthcare workers in a broad way. “I think society, more recently, hasn’t always recognized what doctors, and in particular, nurses do, and all the other people that help keep hospitals going, and take care of patients, really quite selflessly,” she said. “And I hope that, at least for my children, that they can see the value of taking care of other people, that it’s important as a society that we recognize that the health of ourselves is also dependent on the health of everybody else around us.”
As Dr. Comen says, it’s not just about our own health or the health of our family it’s about the health and wellness of everyone around us.
The COVID-19 Pandemic Shines Bright Light On True Value Of Healthcare Workers
Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.
ANSWER QUESTIONS
