[Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on skin cancer screening : Results of a large dermatology practice in Bavaria's largest county by area]. / Der Einfluss der COVID-19-Pandemie auf das Hautkrebsscreening : Ergebnisse einer großen Hautarztpraxis im flächengrößten Landkreis Bayerns.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The advantages and disadvantages of the nationwide skin cancer screening which was introduced in 2008 are regularly discussed. OBJECTIVES: Do missed skin cancer screenings change the tumor depths? METHODS: Evaluation and analysis of office data from the second quarters of 2019, 2020 and 2021 were compared using the one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) with Welch's F test. RESULTS: There was a significant increase in the tumor thickness in squamous cell carcinoma and basal cell carcinoma, while there was only a tendency due to the small amount of data available for malignant melanoma. CONCLUSIONS: The results of the analysis emphasize the importance of the skin cancer screening as a method of early detection and reduction of mutilating operations and expensive immunotherapies by the prompt detection of malignant tumors.