Mortality in adult patients with solid or hematological cancers and SARS-CoV-2 infection with a specific focus on lung and breast malignancies: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Authors

Marco Tagliamento

Marco Tagliamento

Lung Cancer Unit, Medical Oncology 2, IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Department of Internal Medicine and Medical Specialties (DiMI), University of Genova, Genoa, Italy

Marco Tagliamento , Elisa Agostinetto , Marco Bruzzone , Marcello Ceppi , Kamal S. Saini , Evandro de Azambuja , Kevin Punie , Benedikt Westphalen , Gilberto Morgan , Paolo Pronzato , Lucia Del Mastro , Francesca Poggio , Matteo Lambertini

Organizations

Lung Cancer Unit, Medical Oncology 2, IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Department of Internal Medicine and Medical Specialties (DiMI), University of Genova, Genoa, Italy, Institut Jules Bordet and Université Libre de Bruxelles (U.L.B), Brussels, Belgium, Unit of Clinical Epidemiology, IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genoa, Italy, Covance Inc., Princeton, NJ, Department of General Medical Oncology and Multidisciplinary Breast Centre, Leuven Cancer Institute, University Hospitals Leuven, Leuven, Belgium, Comprehensive Cancer Center Munich and Department of Medicine III, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany, Department of Medical and Radiation Oncology, Skåne University Hospital, Lund, Sweden, Medical Oncology 2, IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genoa, Italy, IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, University of Genova, Genoa, Italy, Breast Unit, IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genoa, Italy, U.O. Clinica di Oncologia Medica, IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Department of Internal Medicine and Medical Specialties (DiMI), University of Genova, Genoa, Italy

Research Funding

No funding received
None

Background: Patients with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection and a diagnosis of cancer are at high risk of severe symptomatic disease (COVID-19) and death. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of published studies, to estimate the case-fatality rate (CFR) of patients with solid or hematological tumors and SARS-CoV-2 infection. Methods: A systematic search of PubMed library up to 31 January, 2021, was performed in order to identify publications reporting the CFR among adult patients with solid or hematological tumors and SARS-CoV-2 infection. CFR was defined as the rate of deaths among SARS-CoV-2-positive cancer patients. Moreover, we separately assessed the CFR among patients with lung and breast cancer. Studies with at least 10 patients were included. The CFR was assessed through a random effect model, and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated. The Higgins I2 index was computed to assess the heterogeneity between studies. Results: The systematic search of the literaturereturned 1,727studies. 1,551 were excluded on the basis of the title, 29 based on the abstract, and 3 were duplicates. A total of 144 studies were selected, including 35,725 patients with solid or hematological tumors and SARS-CoV-2 infection. In total, 46 and 32 studies reported the CFR among COVID-19 patients with lung (total N = 1,555) and breast (total N = 1.398) cancer, respectively. Overall, the CFR was 25.5% (95% CI 23.1%-28.1%, Egger test p < 0.001). A sensitivity analysis, after excluding studies with less than 100 patients, showed a CFR of 22.1% (95% CI 19.4%-25.2%). The CFR among patients with lung cancer and SARS-CoV2 infection was 33.4% (95% CI 28.1%-39.6%) when including all studies and 26.3% (95% CI 17.6%-39.2%) at the sensitivity analysis after excluding studies with less than 100 patients. The CFR among patients with breast cancer and SARS-CoV2 infection was 13.7% (95% CI 9.1%-20.7%) when including all studies and 13.0% (95% CI 7.6%-22.1%) at the sensitivity analysis after excluding studies with less than 100 patients. Conclusions: One year after the outbreak of the pandemic, this large meta-analysis reports the impact of SARS-CoV-2 infection in patients with cancer. This population experienced a high probability of mortality, with a comparatively higher CFR in patients with lung cancer, and a comparatively lower CFR in patients with breast cancer. Patients with an underlying diagnosis of cancer require special attention with aggressive preventive measures that also include early access to COVID-19 vaccination.

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Abstract Details

Meeting

2021 ASCO Annual Meeting

Session Type

Publication Only

Session Title

Publication Only: Health Services Research and Quality Improvement

Track

Quality Care/Health Services Research

Sub Track

Outcomes

Citation

J Clin Oncol 39, 2021 (suppl 15; abstr e18608)

DOI

10.1200/JCO.2021.39.15_suppl.e18608

Abstract #

e18608

Abstract Disclosures

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