| REVIEW ARTICLE |
|
| Year : 2022 | Volume
: 3
| Issue : 1 | Page : 49-54 |
|
|
Presentation and severity of COVID-19 among cancer patients: A narrative review of existing evidence
Shanker Matta1, Ram Bajpai2, Rekha Shekhawat3, Rajesh Kumar Singh3
1 Epidemiology section, New Delhi Tuberculosis Centre, New Delhi, India
2 School of Medicine, Keele University, Staffordshire, UK
3 Department of Community Medicine, PDU Medical College, Churu, Rajasthan, India
Correspondence Address:
Dr. Rajesh Kumar Singh
Department of Community Medicine, PDU Medical College, Churu, Rajasthan
India
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None
DOI: 10.4103/JME.JME_63_21
|
|
|
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) continues to have a serious impact on people, including cancer patients and it was declared a public health emergency of international concern by the World Health Organisation. The present article attempts to review the prevalence, presentation and severity of COVID-19 among confirmed cancer patients from various studies. Cancer patients are vulnerable to COVID-19 and the data suggest that patients with cancer are at an increased risk of death compared to patients without cancer. Majority of patients from various studies presented with fever, cough or shortness of breath. Other symptoms included diarrhoea, nausea and vomiting, ageusia and anosmia. Those who died displayed higher rates of comorbidities compared with those who did not, including cardiovascular disease and hypertension. The risk of death was significantly associated with advancing patient age. Mortality from COVID-19 in cancer patients appears to be principally driven by age, gender and comorbidities.
|
|
|
|
| [FULL TEXT] [PDF]* |
|
 |
|
