WCLC 2021 | Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on diagnosis and prognosis of LC

Roxana Reyes, MD, of the Hospital Clinic Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain, discusses the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the incidence and clinical outcomes of lung cancer patients at WCLC 2021. Dr Reyes discusses outcomes from a retrospective study of newly diagnosed non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and small cell lung cancer (SCLC) which reviewed clinical data to assess the differences between new lung cancer cases and disease severity before and after the pandemic. The study found a 38% decrease in the number of new cases diagnosed compared with before the pandemic. More symptomatic cases were newly diagnosed and a higher proportion of oncologic emergencies and hospitalizations was observed during the pandemic. This interview took place during the IASLC World Conference on Lung Cancer (WCLC) virtual meeting 2021.