DORDRECHT – Doctors at the Albert Schweitzer hospital who treat cancer, saw a significant drop in the number of new diagnoses in the past year. The average decrease, divided over various medical specialties, is almost twenty percent. “We are concerned that patients for fear of corona will continue to walk with complaints for too long before they go to the doctor,” says Annemieke Thijssen, gastrointestinal liver specialist and chair of the hospital’s Oncology Committee.
A group of patients who statistically should have cancer is now not in the picture at the hospital. Thijssen: “Our fear is that we will see an increase in people who later report with cancer at a more advanced stage. That is why we urge everyone not to avoid care for fear of getting corona or for fear of being a burden to us. “
During the first and second corona wave in 2020, regular care in hospitals largely came to a standstill. “During that period, despite all the limitations, we continued to provide care to new oncology patients, with as little delay in research and treatment as possible,” says Thijssen. “The hectic pace has now eased somewhat and we are getting a better overview of the past year. Now we see that we have, as it were, lost a group of patients across the board. ”
This concerns all specialties that treat cancer. Figures from the region even show an extra large ‘dip’ in the number of new diagnoses of lung and colon cancer. Thijssen: “One factor in colon cancer is that there was no population screening for a while, but there is no such preventive examination for lung cancer. Patients may have turned to another hospital, but other hospitals see the same picture. The tricky part is that we cannot explain it. There is no monitor for people who do not come. Perhaps even the down-to-earth national character in our region plays a role, so that people will only see the complaints for a while at first. ”
From her own medical specialty, which includes colon cancer, Thijssen and her colleagues also emphasize to GPs that there is always room for new patients. “Especially when complaints can indicate cancer. We immediately assess each new referral for the potential risk. An endoscopy of the intestine in case of urgent complaints is possible quickly. But a GP can only refer a patient who actually reports. ” On behalf of all the specialisms from the Albert Schweitzer hospital that provide oncological care, Thijssen therefore calls on residents of the region not to stay away and to visit the doctor in case of complaints. “The hospital is a safe environment and we can simply receive new patients. It is more difficult to cure patients who have waited a long time to come to us. ”
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