Out-of-hospital management strategies for gastric cancer patients during the COVID-19 outbreak.

ABSTRACT

Since the outbreak of Corona Virus Disease 2019 occurred in December 2019, the reduction of population mobility has curbed the spread of the epidemic to some extent but also prolonged the waiting time for the treatment of patients with gastric cancer. Based on fully understanding the different staging characteristics of gastric cancer, clinical departments should develop reasonable out-of-hospital management strategies. On one hand, reasonable communication channels should be established to allow patients to receive adequate guidance out of the hospital. On the other hand, shared decisions with patients should be made to adjust treatment strategies, and education on viral prevention should be implemented to minimize the impact of the epidemic on tumor treatment.Copyright © 2020 by the Chinese Medical Association.