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The impact of treatment delay on skin cancer in COVID-19 era: a case-control study.
- Source :
-
World Journal of Surgical Oncology . 12/24/2021, Vol. 19 Issue 1, p1-7. 7p. - Publication Year :
- 2021
-
Abstract
- Background: The outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic led to a 2-month lockdown in Europe. Elective surgeries, including skin cancer excisions, were postponed. The purpose of this prospective case-control study was to assess the impact of the treatment delay on patients with non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC) or melanoma operated in the first post-lockdown period. Methods: A comparative study of skin cancer operations performed in a 4-month period either in 2020 or in 2019 was conducted. All data were collected from a prospectively maintained clinic database and the pathological reports. Continuous variables were compared with t test or Mann-Whitney U test according to their distribution. Categorical variables were compared with Fisher exact test. Odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence interval (95% CI) was used to assess the risk of excising high-risk NMSC in 2020 compared with 2019. Results: Skin cancer excision was performed in 158 cases in 2020 compared to 125 cases in 2019 (26.4% increase). Significantly, more SCC were excised in 2020 (p = 0.024). No significant difference for several clinical parameters regarding BCC, SCC, and melanoma was identified. However, the reconstructive method applied, following NMSC excision, was significantly different, requiring frequently either skin grafting or a flap. Conclusion: These results indicate that skin cancer treatment delay, due to COVID-19 pandemic, is related to an increased incidence of SCC and more complicated methods of reconstruction. Considering the relapsing COVID-19 waves, significant skin cancer treatment delays should be avoided. Trial registration: The study adhered to the STROBE statement for case-control studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 14777819
- Volume :
- 19
- Issue :
- 1
- Database :
- Academic Search Index
- Journal :
- World Journal of Surgical Oncology
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 154791792
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1186/s12957-021-02468-z