Surgical Oncologists and the COVID-19 Pandemic: Guiding Cancer Patients Effectively through Turbulence and Change

  • PDF / 743,301 Bytes
  • 14 Pages / 595.276 x 790.866 pts Page_size
  • 91 Downloads / 181 Views

DOWNLOAD

REPORT


CONTINUING EDUCATION– HEALTH SERVICES RESEARCH AND GLOBAL ONCOLOGY

Surgical Oncologists and the COVID-19 Pandemic: Guiding Cancer Patients Effectively through Turbulence and Change E. Shelley Hwang, MD, MPH1, Charles M. Balch, MD2, Glen C. Balch, MD3, Sheldon M. Feldman, MD4, Mehra Golshan, MD MBA5, Stephen R. Grobmyer, MD6, Steven K. Libutti, MD7, Julie A. Margenthaler, MD8, Madhu Sasidhar, MD6, Kiran K. Turaga, MD, MPH9, Sandra L. Wong, MD, MS10, Kelly M. McMasters, MD, PhD11, and Kenneth K. Tanabe, MD12 1

Department of Surgery, Duke University and Duke Cancer Institute, Durham, NC; 2Division of Surgical Oncology, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX; 3Department of Surgery, Emory University, Atlanta, GA; 4 Department of Surgery, Montefiore Einstein Center for Cancer Care, Bronx, NY; 5Department of Surgery, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA; 6Oncology Institute, and Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine Institutes, Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; 7Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Brunswick, NJ; 8Department of Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO; 9 Department of Surgery, University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine, Chicago, IL; 10Department of Surgery, Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth, NH; 11Department of Surgery, University of Louisville School of Medicine, Louisville, KY; 12Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA

ABSTRACT Background. The COVID-19 pandemic has posed extraordinary demands from patients, providers, and health care systems. Despite this, surgical oncologists must maintain focus on providing high-quality, empathetic care for the almost 2 million patients nationally who will be diagnosed with operable cancer this year. The focus of hospitals is transitioning from initial COVID-19 preparedness activities to a more sustained approach to cancer care. Methods. Editorial Board members provided observations of the implications of the pandemic on providing care to surgical oncology patients. Results. Strategies are presented that have allowed institutions to successfully prepare for cancer care during COVID-19, as well as other strategies that will help hospitals and surgical oncologists manage anticipated challenges in the near term. Perspectives are provided on: (1) maintaining a safe environment for surgical oncology

Ó Society of Surgical Oncology 2020 First Received: 17 May 2020 K. K. Tanabe, MD e-mail: [email protected]

care; (2) redirecting the multidisciplinary model to guide surgical decisions; (3) harnessing telemedicine to accommodate requisite physical distancing; (4) understanding interactions between SARS CoV-2 and cancer therapy; (5) considering the ethical impact of professional guidelines for surgery prioritization; and (6) advocating for our patients who require oncologic surgery in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusions. Until an effective vaccine becomes available for widespread use, it is imperative that surgica