Covid Pandemic Left 55,000 Cancer Cases Undiagnosed Across 7 Nations, Study Finds

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(Bloomberg) — About 55,000 cancer cases went undiagnosed across seven high-income countries during the first nine months of the Covid-19 pandemic, underscoring the extent to which lockdowns and health-system disruptions affected routine medical care, a study found.

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An estimated 16% of expected cancer diagnoses across Australia, Canada, Denmark, Ireland, New Zealand, Norway and the UK were missing between April and December 2020, compared with pre-pandemic trends. The largest declines were seen in prostate cancer diagnoses, which fell 24% below expected levels, followed by female breast cancer and melanoma, both down 18%. Lung and ovarian cancers were less affected, said researchers from the International Agency for Research on Cancer in Lyon, France. 

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The study, published Monday in The Lancet Oncology, is among the largest international assessments of the pandemic’s impact on cancer diagnosis, drawing on data from 2.6 million patients across 18 jurisdictions. Researchers found substantial differences between countries, with Norway and New Zealand seeing smaller declines and faster recoveries than the UK and Ireland, suggesting health-system resilience and the continuity of screening and diagnostic services played a key role.

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The findings offer lessons for governments seeking to make cancer-care systems more resilient during future public health emergencies, the researchers said.

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“A more detailed understanding of why some health systems were better able to withstand the pressures of the Covid-19 pandemic could provide valuable lessons for future crisis preparedness,” said Isabelle Soerjomataram, deputy head of the agency’s Cancer Surveillance Branch and the study’s senior author.

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Temporary suspensions of cancer screening programs, reduced access to primary-care appointments and reluctance among patients to seek medical attention because of fears of contracting Covid likely contributed to the decline in diagnoses, the authors said.

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While the study found limited evidence of an immediate shift toward more advanced-stage cancers during 2020, the longer-term consequences remain uncertain. Pandemic-related disruptions to US cancer care were associated with roughly 17,390 excess cancer deaths within a year of diagnosis during 2020 and 2021, researchers estimated in a study in JAMA Oncology in February.

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