Long-term effects of COVID-19 on cancer patients: the experience from Guy's Cancer Centre

Future Oncol. 2022 Oct;18(32):3585-3594. doi: 10.2217/fon-2022-0088. Epub 2022 Sep 29.

Abstract

Background: Few studies have investigated the long-term effects of COVID-19 on cancer patients. Materials & methods: The authors conducted a telephone survey on the long-term symptoms of cancer patients from Guy's Cancer Centre. They compared patients whose symptoms occurred/got worse over 4 weeks after COVID-19 diagnosis (classified as long COVID) with patients who did not develop symptoms or whose symptoms occurred/got worse in the first 4 weeks after diagnosis. Results: The authors analyzed responses from 80 patients with a previous COVID-19 diagnosis; 51.3% (n = 41) developed long COVID. The most common symptoms were fatigue, breathlessness and cognitive impairment. Conclusion: Findings suggest that over half of the cancer population will experience long-term effects after their initial COVID-19 diagnosis. Further studies are required to validate the findings of this study.

Keywords: COVID-19; cancer; epidemiology; long COVID; oncology.

MeSH terms

  • COVID-19 Testing
  • COVID-19* / complications
  • COVID-19* / epidemiology
  • Dyspnea
  • Humans
  • Neoplasms* / complications
  • Neoplasms* / epidemiology
  • Post-Acute COVID-19 Syndrome