industry

Covid outbreak hinders cancer treatment in hospitals


The Covid outbreak across the country has landed cancer patients in grave danger.

Worried about their low immunity levels, leading hospitals and research centres are advising cancer patients to remain at home till Covid infections die out. Deferment of surgeries, radiation and chemotherapy sessions have messed up the treatment schedules of many cancer patients across the country.

India is home to over 25 lakh cancer patients, with roughly 8 lakh new cases added up every year. Nearly 6 lakh people die of the disease. Early-stage detection and timely medical intervention may help, but oncologists are not willing to expose their patients to the Covid infection.

“Patients who are undergoing cancer treatment may have low immunity, and are more susceptible to catching the infection. And if it does, it’ll be very fatal for the patient. So we’re taking all precautions to keep them safe – at least from Covid,” says a senior doctor at Christian Medical College, Vellore.

Bluntly put, a stage-2 patient catching Covid would die of the infection much sooner than of cancer. In China, Covid-positive Cancer patients recorded a 40% mortality rate – much higher than any other sample groups.

“We’re taking all these factors into consideration while treating cancer patients now,” says Dr. SD Banavali, a director and senior oncologist at Mumbai-based Tata Memorial Hospital, which logs over 30,000 “new patient visits” every year. Over 1500 patients queue up for out-patient consultation and follow-up treatment every day at the hospital. Over 60% of TMH’s patients are from other states.

“So, post the lockdown, inflow of patients from other states has come down quite a bit… Our post-treatment follow-ups are done telephonically. We advise patients about drug dosage, routine and diet; we’re also in touch with local doctors treating them,” explains Dr Banavali.

Patients who are currently undergoing treatment for cancer (termed aggressive treatment stage) are being introduced to “light chemotherapy sessions” – so as not to drop their immunity levels. “If you do normal intense chemo, immunity levels of the patient may come down and he may catch the infection. So we’re trying out light chemo sessions,” reason Dr Banavali.

“Radiation therapy has been deferred for patients who are not in critical stages… But for serious cases, and the ones where therapy cycle is on, we’re continuing with the treatment,” Dr Banavali say, adding, “We’re forced to find new ways to fight cancer now. We’re hoping, these methods will work well for our patients.”

Regional Cancer Centre in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, which books over 15,000 new cancer cases very year, has scaled down onco-surgeries by a good measure. The hospital is also deferring chemotherapy sessions for non-critical cancer patients.

“Currently, chemotherapy sessions are only made available to patients suffering from critical conditions and high-grade leukemia,” says a senior doctor at RCC.

The hospital is carrying on radiation therapy for patients who are in mid-cycle of the treatment. Radiation therapy for new cases – that are not critical – are being rescheduled to a later date. Follow-ups are mostly via teleconferencing. The hospital is seeing a drop in new registrations post the lockdown.

The Gujarat Cancer & Research Institute (GCRI) is continuing chemotherapy sessions for patients suffering from lymphoma and leukemia. Radiation therapy is only made available for critical patients while follow-ups and post-treatment management is done on phone by oncologists. The research centre is still carrying on critical / emergency surgeries while planned/not-so-critical ones are put on hold.

“Our list of patients awaiting surgeries is filling up fast… We’re worried about their condition. A few weeks later, cancer in many of these patients may turn inoperable,” says Dr. Shashank Pandya, director, GCRI.

“We’re continuing to treat critical cases in heavily quarantined buildings… We’ve put in place mechanisms to stop all possible Covid-positive cases from entering our premises,” he assures.

There is not much time for many early and mid-stage cancer patients, warn leading oncologists. With limited options at hand, they will have to eventually fight cancer or Covid – or both.





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