16:22 06.06.2020Short url
–
The lack of access to care caused by the Covid-19 pandemic worries cancer specialists, who fear an increase in deaths. The main concern is the delay in screening.
–
Delays in the care of cancer patients could lead to a large wave of mortality.
Already on April 22, the Unicancer hospital network warned in a press release against “renouncing care” during the pandemic. Noting that some patients no longer dare to go to health facilities, Unicancer spoke of a situation “that could cause serious damage”, in particular for chronic or acute pathologies.
A finding reiterated by Jean-Yves Blay, president of Unicancer, interviewed by Le Parisien Wednesday June 3. According to him, a wave of deaths is to be expected, after the decrease in requests for access to care.
“We fear 5,000 to 10,000 more cancer deaths. These figures are the optimistic hypothesis: the English have projections of up to 40,000 excess deceased patients. This problem is linked to the delay in treatment. In the centers 100% dedicated to oncology, we note a drop of 20 to 50% of new cases, so imagine in general hospitals … ”, he explains to the Parisian.
Delay in screenings
Jean-Yves Blay says that the problem does not come from patients already followed, who will continue to be “in due course”. But he is more pessimistic about the new cases, which will have been slow to be diagnosed during the pandemic.
“So the ones that worry us are the new patients. For example, women who, in March, felt a small lump in their breasts and thought that it was better to wait until the end of the epidemic to consult, “said the president of Unicancer to Le Parisien.
Delays in screenings which can prove to be critical for certain cancers, such as those of the breast or ovaries, explains Jean-Yves Blay again.
The oncologist, who calls the patients to consult as quickly as possible, explains however that he has not observed “a patient tsunami” since the deconfinement.
Other healthcare professionals have already raised concerns about the collateral effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. In Canada, for example, cardiologists and neurologists have already warned of the “time bomb” of cardiovascular disease, again due to a lack of care during the epidemic.
– .
