scholarly journals The Impact of New Coronavirus on Cancer Patients

Author(s):  
Aida Karimian ◽  
Sona Talaei ◽  
Arash Abdolmaleki ◽  
Asadollah Asadi ◽  
Muhammad Akram ◽  
...  

t the end of 2019, a new coronavirus (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)) emerged in China and then spread worldwide. Presently, Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a main public health issue. As of August 2021, more than 200 million confirmed cases from coronavirus and more than 4 million deaths have been reported by WHO in 222 countries. The data sources are Google Scholar, PubMed, and Science Direct articles. Publications were searched without regard to time in order to obtain a holistic and comprehensive perspective of the research done on this issue thus far. The SARS-CoV-2 can be transmitted from the human-to-human by respiratory droplets and shows great potential for a pandemic. Therefore, on March 11, 2020, COVID-19 was introduced as a global pandemic by WHO. Cancer patients are at high risk for exposure to the coronavirus. In the present article, we discuss the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the quality of life of cancer patients and their treatment process. One of these challenges is not visiting the patients in medical centers and hospitals for afraid of contracting the virus. Therefore, the diagnosis and treatment of cancer patients may be delayed, which is a serious threat to the lives of cancer patients. In this article, in addition to the impact of coronavirus on the lives of cancer patients, the severity of the disease in these patients, their required medical care, and the vaccination process are discussed.

2021 ◽  
pp. 107815522199844
Author(s):  
Abdullah M Alhammad ◽  
Nora Alkhudair ◽  
Rawan Alzaidi ◽  
Latifa S Almosabhi ◽  
Mohammad H Aljawadi

Introduction Chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting is a serious complication of cancer treatment that compromises patients’ quality of life and treatment adherence, which necessitates regular assessment. Therefore, there is a need to assess patient-reported nausea and vomiting using a validated scale among Arabic speaking cancer patient population. The objective of this study was to translate and validate the Functional Living Index-Emesis (FLIE) instrument in Arabic, a patient-reported outcome measure designed to assess the influence of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting on patients’ quality of life. Methods Linguistic validation of an Arabic-language version was performed. The instrument was administered to cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy in a tertiary hospital's cancer center in Saudi Arabia. Results One-hundred cancer patients who received chemotherapy were enrolled. The participants’ mean age was 53.3 ± 14.9 years, and 50% were female. Half of the participants had a history of nausea and vomiting with previous chemotherapy. The Cronbach coefficient alpha for the FLIE was 0.9606 and 0.9736 for nausea and vomiting domains, respectively, which indicated an excellent reliability for the Arabic FLIE. The mean FLIE score was 110.9 ± 23.5, indicating no or minimal impact on daily life (NIDL). Conclusions The Arabic FLIE is a valid and reliable tool among the Arabic-speaking cancer population. Thus, the Arabic version of the FLIE will be a useful tool to assess the quality of life among Arabic speaking patients receiving chemotherapy. Additionally, the translated instrument will be a useful tool for future research studies to explore new antiemetic treatments among cancer patients.


2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽  
Author(s):  
K Apostolidis

Abstract The speaker will present the perspective of the cancer patients, and the challenges they encounter across the spectrum of care and what measures they consider relevant in terms of prevention, diagnosis, treatment and, indeed, to raise awareness of the impact of AMR on rendering cancer treatments ineffective. She will elaborate on survivorship, and on the impact of AMR on the quality of life of patients, their carers, and families. Emphasis will be given on the implications of modern therapies, such as immunotherapy, representing a unique challenge in terms of better understanding the effect on overall health of patients, with the effect they have the immune system, further weakening the patient and leaving him/her exposed to infections potentially of higher risk than cancer itself.


2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 469-473
Author(s):  
Ting Fang ◽  
Nian Wang ◽  
Meng Chen ◽  
Hongmei Ma

Objective Explore the impact of personalized nursing services and hospice care on the quality of life of elderly patients with advanced cancer. Method We selected 80 elderly cancer patients admitted to our hospital from September 2020 to May 2021, and divided these patients into a study group and a control group using a random number table method. The patients in the control group used conventional nursing methods to treat and care for the patients, and the patients in the study group used hospice care measures and combined personalized nursing measures. The quality of life and pain treatment effects of the two groups of patients before and after treatment were compared. Result Before treatment, the quality-of-life scores of the two groups of patients were low, and there was no statistical difference (P>0.05); After treatment, the quality of life of the two groups of patients improved, but compared with the control group, the improvement was more obvious in the study group, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). In terms of pain treatment effect, the total effective rate of pain treatment in the study group was 87.5%, which was significantly better than the 62.5% in the control group. The difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). Conclusion Personalized nursing services and hospice care are conducive to improving the survival and treatment of elderly patients with advanced cancer, and can be used as a clinical application program for the care of advanced cancer patients.


PLoS ONE ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (10) ◽  
pp. e0184147 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paula Parás-Bravo ◽  
Paloma Salvadores-Fuentes ◽  
Cristina Alonso-Blanco ◽  
María Paz-Zulueta ◽  
Miguel Santibañez-Margüello ◽  
...  

1997 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 68-81
Author(s):  
Fatma M. El Sharkawi ◽  
Mahmoud F. Sakr ◽  
Hoda Y. Atta ◽  
Hafez M. Ghanem

The impact of breast cancer therapy on the quality of life [QL] of Egyptian women was studied. Patients were divided into four groups:1:mastectomy alone;2:surgery plus radiotherapy;3:surgery plus chemotherapy;and 4:triple modality. The results revealed that all the four domains of QL of women having adjuvant therapy [groups 2, 3, or 4] were significantly altered compared to those who underwent mastectomy alone. Triple modality adversely affected global QL the most compared to radiotherapy or chemotherapy;radiotherapy had significantly less effect on QL compared to chemotherapy. Triple modality predicted the worst QL. QL measures should be incorporated with the traditional end points for evaluation of treatment and patients given health education on the effects of each therapy


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Atika Dogra ◽  
Anuj Parkash ◽  
Anurag Mehta ◽  
Meenu Bhatia

ABSTRACTBackgroundThe services of front-line health care workers (HCWs) have been paramount in the management of novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Health care professionals have been at high occupational risk of getting disease and even dying of the disease, however; they have been the subject of very limited studies in terms of COVID-19. The objectives of this study are to examine the incidence and the impact of COVID-19 infection among HCWs in terms of recovery, productivity, quality of life (QOL) and post-COVID complications.Materials and MethodsThis was a retrospective, questionnaire based study including demographic details, workplace characteristics, symptoms, source/ spread of infection, details of recovery and the consequences of COVID-19 comprising impaired productivity/ QOL, post-COVID-19 complications and others. The data were analyzed by using IBM SPSS software (Version 23, SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA).Results and ConclusionsOut of a total of 1482 employees, 18.3% (271) were laboratory confirmed to have contracted novel contagion during the study period of 5 months. The median age at diagnosis was 29 (range, 21-62) years. Front-line workers and female workers were the most infected personnel with COVID-19. Flu-like symptoms were the most frequently experienced symptoms. The median time for recovery was 20 (range, 2-150) days. The relationship between pre-existing comorbidities and age was highly significant. The QOL and productivity were associated with pre-existing comorbidities, severity of the disease, time for recovery and post-COVID syndrome. More than a half (51.8%) of all HCWs had suffered from post-COVID complications. There was no fatality reported due to COVID-19. The post-COVID complications were related to pre-existing comorbidities, severity of disease, time for recovery and status of recovery. Further research to explore the consequences of COVID-19 is warranted. The general public needs to be aware of symptoms and management of the post-COVID syndrome.


Author(s):  
Zahra Yaghtin ◽  
Richard Webb ◽  
Sayyed Saeid Khayyatzadeh

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), has been the cause of a global pandemic. Given the impact of nutritional status upon immune function, it is crucial to understand the relationship between micronutrient intake and severity of the disease. This mini-review aimed to summarize the known associations between specific micronutrients (vitamin A, D, E, C and zinc, selenium and magnesium) and the health of coronavirus-infected patients. Low serum levels of these micronutrients are associated with the incidence and severity of SARS-CoV-2. However, further studies are needed to evaluate the outcomes of supplementation with these nutrients.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Salvina Signorelli ◽  
Teresa Surace ◽  
Marcello Migliore ◽  
Eugenio Aguglia

Cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide. Literature reports depression and anxiety are the most common psychiatric symptoms in cancer patients. Notably, lung cancer is associated with major depressive disorder in 5–13% of cases. The present article aims to give an overview regarding the impact of mood disorders on the outcomes of patients affected by lung cancer. Our review showed that pharmacological treatment and psychotherapy can be useful to improve the quality of life of patients with lung cancer. Moreover, the treatment of depression and anxiety can be associated with a reduced mortality. In conclusion, it is important to consider psychiatric care as important as other adjuvant oncologic therapies in patients with cancer.


2016 ◽  
Vol 01 (04) ◽  
pp. 025-028
Author(s):  
Monica Irukulla ◽  
Rama Vaghmare ◽  
Deepa Joseph ◽  
Syed Ahmed ◽  
Jyothi Jonnadula ◽  
...  

AbstractIntroduction: Comorbidities are common among cancer patients and with an aging population are becoming more prevalent. These can potentially affect the stage at diagnosis, treatment and outcomes of people with cancer. Despite the intimate relationship between comorbidity and cancer, there is limited consensus on how to record, interpret or manage comorbidities in the context of cancer. Addressing the impact of comorbid conditions in cancer patients warrants improvement in the evidence base from which to make treatment decisions for those with comorbidities.Methods: In this prospective study, 64 patients with breast cancer, underwent QOL assessment using FACT –B questionnaire at three time points- pre-radiation and three and six months post radiation.Results: 29(46%) patients had comorbidities of which 23 (35%) had cardiovascular comorbidities and 6 had other comorbidities. The co-morbidities were negatively associated with multiple domains of quality of life, including physical functioning, general health, bodily pain. Patients with diabetes and hypertension had significantly lower scores in physical functioning in comparison to patients without diabetes and hypertension, but improved after treatment. In majority of patients the overall scores were less in patients with co-morbidities compared to patients without any co-morbidity.Conclusion: Comorbidities can significantly affect the quality of life in patients with comorbidities. Hence greater research into the QOL issues for better patient care and symptom management especially during the transitioning phase from active care to follow up will help clinicians improve the quality of care and interdisciplinary co-ordination.


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