Breast cancer surgery after the COVID-19 pandemic

• Published in: Future Oncology Vol. 16; no. 33; pp. 2687 - 2690
• Main Authors: Tsang-Wright, Fiona, Tasoulis, Marios-Konstantinos, Roche, Nicola, MacNeill, Fiona
• Format: Journal Article Web Resource
• Language: English
• Published: England Future Medicine Ltd 01.11.2020; Future Science Group
• Subjects: Breast cancer; Breast Neoplasms - surgery; breast surgery; Cancer therapies; Chemotherapy; Coronaviruses; COVID-19; Disease transmission; Female; Humans; Medical diagnosis; Mental health; Pandemics; Patients; Personal protective equipment; recovery phase; SARS-CoV-2; Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; Surgery; Surgical Oncology - trends; Telemedicine; Workforce; United Kingdom > UK; COVID-19; breast cancer; recovery phase; breast surgery
• ISSN: 1479-6694; 1744-8301
• DOI: 10.2217/fon-2020-0619

Data recently released by the UK Office for National Statistics shows a significant increase in the number of deaths compared with the previous 5-year average (2), and this is a direct consequence of COVID-19 and also the indirect impact of healthcare systems’ responses to managing the virus, including a reduction in cancer referral rates, a reduction in emergency attendances and the cancellation of elective surgery (3,4). Healthcare services have rapidly adapted by adopting remote or telephone consultations; deferring routine episodes such as screening survivorship patients and those with a high risk of developing breast cancer, those who have low-risk lesions, or those with noninvasive breast cancer; and halting longer exposure and resource-heavy procedures such as reconstructions and oncoplastic remodeling (7,8). To provide a framework for breast cancer specialists, professional bodies issued guidelines on risk stratification of essential breast cancer care based on tumor stage and biology and focused on identifying patients for whom surgery was time-critical or those for whom surgical intervention could be reasonably deferred for a period of time. Face-to-face consultations will require suitably sized clinic rooms to enable social distancing for the patient and clinician, availability of appropriate personal protective equipment, regular cleaning to follow national and local infection control guidelines and as access to systems for patients with additional needs such as disabilities and language interpreters.