This article is a Preprint
Preprints are preliminary research reports that have not been certified by peer review. They should not be relied on to guide clinical practice or health-related behavior and should not be reported in news media as established information.
Preprints posted online allow authors to receive rapid feedback and the entire scientific community can appraise the work for themselves and respond appropriately. Those comments are posted alongside the preprints for anyone to read them and serve as a post publication assessment.
Cancer does not wait: safeguarding care for pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia patients during the COVID-19 pandemic in a Mexican hospital. (preprint)
authorea preprints; 2024.
Preprint
in English
| PREPRINT-AUTHOREA PREPRINTS | ID: ppzbmed-10.22541.au.170668660.03002671.v1
ABSTRACT
Introduction:
Safeguarding care of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) patients during the COVID-19 pandemic has posed a significant challenge to health systems. We documented continuity (timeliness and compliance) of curative treatment in pediatric ALL patients, and the incidence and outcomes of patients infected with SARS-Cov2 in our institution. Materials andmethods:
We included all ALL patients aged <16 years who received treatment in “Hospital Universitario Dr. José Eleuterio Gonzalez” from March 2020 to June 2021. The causes of non-compliance and the outcomes of patients with COVID-19 were reported.Results:
We analyzed 553 visits from 89 patients with ALL. Chemotherapy administration was timely and compliant with our treatment protocol in 83% (n=459) of the records reviewed. Treatment continuity goals of ≥80% were achieved for all treatment phases, except for the consolidation (66%) and intermediate maintenance phases (60%). The main causes of treatment delays or treatment modifications included lack of financial resources (2.5%), lack of inpatient beds (1.8%) and chemotherapy stock-outs (1.3%), and the treatment abandonment rate was 3.3%. Twenty-two patients (24.7%) were diagnosed with COVID-19. Of these, seven (32%) developed pneumonia, five (22.7%) required oxygen, and two (9%) developed multisystem inflammatory syndrome. For patients with COVID-19, the median length of stay was 9.5 days, and the 30-day mortality rate was 4.5%.Discussion:
The continuity of curative treatment for ALL in the context of COVID-19 was >80% in our hospital. Adapting diagnosis and treatment protocols and implementing strategies to minimize the risk of infection were fundamental to safeguarding continuity care for cancer patients.
Full text:
Available
Collection:
Preprints
Database:
PREPRINT-AUTHOREA PREPRINTS
Main subject:
Pneumonia
/
Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma
/
Cryopyrin-Associated Periodic Syndromes
/
COVID-19
/
Neoplasms
Language:
English
Year:
2024
Document Type:
Preprint
Similar
MEDLINE
...
LILACS
LIS