COVID-19

Maurie Markman, MD, highlights the ongoing regulatory concerns that demand attention of the FDA in the cancer arena amidst evolving issues regarding COVID-19.

Approximately 20% of pediatric patients with cancer infected with COVID-19 experienced severe illness and deaths due to the infection were proportionally higher in this patient population compared with the general pediatric population, providing evidence that children with cancer are at higher risk of developing severe illness from COVID-19.

The continued uncertainties of the current and future status of the COVID-19 pandemic have resulted in a lack of trust in the authority of the scientific establishment in the United States, and elsewhere, as it operates during these difficult times.

Six months after receiving a second dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, patients with solid tumors retained similar levels of COVID-19 antibodies in their blood as individuals without cancer.

Clinical trial enrollments underwent a substantial decrease during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic only to rebound during the winter 2020 to 2021 wave, and primarily affected enrollment to cancer control and prevention trials vs treatment trials.

COVID-19 continued to result in high admission and fatality rates among patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia during the first 13 months of the pandemic, and although risk of severe infection was determined to be independent of age, CLL status, and treatment, being age 75 years or older was revealed to be a significant risk factor for death.

A survey of more than 6,800 cancer patients conducted this month by Florida Cancer Specialists & Research Institute found that patients overwhelmingly prefer that the FCS physicians, nurses and staff members who provide their care are vaccinated and wear masks to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and provide a safe environment within clinics.

The National Comprehensive Cancer Center Network has issued an official statement calling on all healthcare systems to ensure that their workforces are immunized with one of the authorized COVID-19 vaccines.

The FDA has approved the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for use in the prevention of COVID-19 disease in individuals aged 16 years or older.

Chris Labaki, MD, and Quoc-Dien Trinh, MD, discuss their research on the decline in cancer screenings during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the recovery of these tests, and potential existing disparities to be addressed.

COVID-19 vaccination has been shown to induce high rates of seroconversion in patients with cancer, although those with hematologic malignancies have demonstrated lower immunogenicity and those who previously received immunosuppressive therapies appear to be less responsive.

One year ago, few objective observers would have suggested that the percentage of individuals who are currently fully vaccinated is less than 30%, despite the well-documented real-world success data for the vaccines in preventing serious illness, hospitalizations, and death from COVID-19 infection.

After a dramatic decrease during the first peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, a substantial increase in cancer screening procedures during more recent time periods has been reported.

The COVID-19 pandemic had a relatively limited effect on immuno-oncology research, according to results from the Association of Community Cancer Centers fourth annual analysis of the IO landscape.

More than 50 health care professional organizations, including the American Society of Hematology, the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the American Society for Radiation Oncology, the Society for Gynecologic Oncology, and the American Medical Association issued a joint statement Monday calling for all health care employers to require COVID-19 vaccinations for all their employees.

Suboptimal antibody responses to SARS-CoV-2 vaccination have been reported in patients with multiple myeloma, leaving them at a greater risk for developing severe COVID-19.

Patients with a urological cancer who were also infected with COVID-19 and undergoing elective surgery for their disease, were found to have a significantly higher likelihood of experiencing respiratory complications and mortality than those without the virus.

The provision of urologic care underwent a significant decline during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic across all demographic groups and practice settings in the United States, regardless of the timing of stay-at-home order mandates.

Balazs Halmos, MD, MS, discusses a study examining the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccination in patients with cancer and identified important areas for future research.

A silver lining of the COVID-19 pandemic has been the rapid uptake of telemedicine and virtual health care for patients with cancer.

Patients with hematologic malignancies, which include cancers that affect the blood, bone marrow, and lymph nodes, have demonstrated a higher susceptibility to COVID-19 potentially because of inherent and cancer therapy–related immunosuppression.

The overall picture related to COVID-19 in the Unites States is encouraging, and we might suspect that the American public would be relatively united with favorable views of efforts of public health officials and organizations at the national, state, and local levels to successfully control this terrible event and return us to our prepandemic state.

The FDA has issued an emergency use authorization for intravenous tocilizumab for the treatment of adult and pediatric patients who have been hospitalized, are receiving systemic corticosteroids, and require supplemental oxygen, noninvasive or invasive mechanical ventilation, or extracorporeal membrane oxygenation

Was it natural zoonotic spillover that catapulted SARS-CoV-2 from an emerging virus into a pandemic pathogen or was it something much more sinister? Is it at all possible that a lab leak in Wuhan, China, was the spark that lit the fuse?

Individuals with cancer or who have a history of cancer should qualify for inclusion on COVID-19 vaccine trials, unless there is a safety justification for exclusion.

Rates of clinical trial initiation, novel drug development, and collaborative research and development deals were oncology.

Although the COVID-19 vaccine rollout is unprecedented in speed and scope, the process of postapproval surveillance has been shown to be robust and should serve as a source of reassurance to the public regarding the effectiveness of the initial and follow-up review process.

The COVID-19 pandemic has inspired a new mantra for wellness in the oncology community and beyond.

Silver linings of the COVID-19 pandemic have opened the door for new opportunities for decentralized clinical trials and real-world data in a post–COVID-19 world.

The coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic has forever changed our world. We must remember the heavy societal burden this virus has wrought, including lives lost, the significant and debilitating late effects for survivors, and the mental health crisis for survivors, caregivers, and the general population.