The coronavirus pandemic had no influence on the chances of survival of cancer patients in Switzerland. Temporarily, fewer diagnoses have been made, but that did not have significant consequences, according to a study.
While research carried out in other countries has highlighted the marked effects of the COVVI-19 pandemic on the evolution of cancer, the situation in Switzerland appears different, the national body for registration of cancer in a statement said on Tuesday.
The pandemic has resulted in a temporary drop in the number of cases diagnosed, but did not have a significant negative impact or on the progress stage of tumors at the time of diagnosis, or on the survival of patients during the following year, according to this study published in Swiss Medical Weekly.
For this research, the National Institute for Epidemiology and the Registration of Cancer (NICER) analyzed the data from the registers of tumors from all over Switzerland, more than 218,000 cases identified between 2017 and 2021.
Scientists have examined the impact of the pandemic on the frequency of diagnosed cases, the stage of the disease and the survival rate one year after the diagnosis for all types of cancer, as well as for breast cancer, colon-rectum, lung, prostate and skin (melanoma).
Containment: fewer diagnoses
The first wave of the pandemic, with the containment of spring 2020, led to a significant drop in the number of cancers diagnosed, especially in April, with a drop of 19.9% compared to the monthly average in previous years.
The most affected cancers were those generally detected by screening examinations: breast (-39.9%), prostate (-29.0%), rectum (-28.7%) and melanoma (-26.9%). Lung cancer diagnoses decreased less (- 6.9%).
However, this drop was largely offset during the year for most cancers, so that the total number of cases diagnosed in 2020 has remained comparable to that of previous years.
Increased diagnostics in 2021
In 2021, a notable increase of +7.3% of cancer cases was observed compared to the period 2017-2019, with a peak in March 2021 ( +18.8%). This increase mainly concerns prostate cancers and melanomas. Additional studies are necessary to determine whether this increase results from a catch -up of missed diagnoses during the 2020 confinement or if it has other causes, according to the authors.
The results relating to the stadium and survival show that, despite the temporary decrease in the number of cases diagnosed in 2020, the pandemic was not delayed in the diagnosis of cancers in a relevant manner for the prognosis. The distribution of stages of the disease at the time of diagnosis remained stable between 2017 and 2021.
Likewise, cancers diagnosed in 2020 or 2021 were not associated with a less favorable prognosis during the first year following the diagnosis. Survival rates at one year are even slightly higher in 2021 compared to the period 2017-2019, continuing a general trend for constant improvement in recent decades.
/ATS
