ABSTRACT
The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has posed several challenges to the hematology community to re-organize the medical care of patients with hematologic malignancies. Whereas the oncology societies favored a more or less conservative approach which considered the possibility of delaying treatment administration on a case-by-case basis, the hematology community guidelines were less stringent and recommended adequate individualized regimens. As countries are de-escalating the lockdown and the medical community is unable to foresee the end of the current outbreak will and whether the pandemic would eventually come back as a seasonal infection, there is interest in screening of patients with hematology malignancies with COVID-19 instead of limiting access to curative treatments. The rapidly accumulating knowledge about COVID-19 allows a better understanding of the diagnostic tools that may be potentially used in screening. Herein, we briefly review the pathophysiology of COVID-19, the rationale of screening of patients with hematologic malignancies, tools for screening, and available guidelines.
Subject(s)
COVID-19/complications , COVID-19/diagnosis , Hematologic Neoplasms/complications , SARS-CoV-2 , Adrenal Cortex Hormones/administration & dosage , Adrenal Cortex Hormones/adverse effects , Adrenal Cortex Hormones/therapeutic use , Antineoplastic Agents, Immunological/administration & dosage , Antineoplastic Agents, Immunological/adverse effects , Antineoplastic Agents, Immunological/therapeutic use , COVID-19/etiology , COVID-19/virology , Clinical Decision-Making , Colony-Stimulating Factors/administration & dosage , Colony-Stimulating Factors/adverse effects , Colony-Stimulating Factors/therapeutic use , Disease Management , Disease Susceptibility/immunology , Hematologic Neoplasms/therapy , Humans , Immunocompromised Host , Mass Screening , Molecular Diagnostic Techniques , Molecular Targeted Therapy/adverse effects , Molecular Targeted Therapy/methods , Practice Guidelines as TopicABSTRACT
COVID-19 has been declared a pandemic by the world health organization. Patients with cancer, and particularly hematologic malignancies may be at higher risk for severe complications due to their malignancy, immune dysregulation, therapy, and associated comorbidities. The oncology community has been proactive in issuing practice guidelines to help optimize management, and limit infection risk and complications from SARS-COV-2. Although hematologic malignancies account for only 10% of all cancers, their management is particularly complex, especially in the time of COVID-19. Screening or early detection of COVID-19 are central for preventative/mitigation strategy, which is the best current strategy in our battle against COVID-19. Herein, we provide an overview of COVID-19 screening strategies and highlight the unique aspects of treating patients with hematologic malignancies.