16 Months Follow Up of Patients’ Behavior and Mild COVID-19 Patterns in a Large Cohort of Cancer Patients During the Pandemic

Abstract

Background: Acute severe forms of COVID-19 infection are more likely in cancer patients and growing attention has been given to the persistent symptoms of the disease after severe COVID-19. However, mild illness is the dominant clinical presentation of COVID-19 infection. To investigate patients’ behavior and the short- and longer-term pattern of the disease in cancer patients with mild COVID infection, a longitudinal online survey was conducted for 16 months during the pandemic in a large cohort of cancer patients from a French COVID-19 hot spot. An online questionnaire was administered at three time points between the first wave of the pandemic in France and the fourth wave. The questionnaire was completed by 1415 to 2224 patients, which queried patients’ demographics, their behavior, and COVID infection patterns. Seventy percent of the patients were female, and 40% had a comorbid condition. More than one-third of the participants had breast cancer, and half were survivors. The rate of infection was 30% during wave 1 and 10% in wave 4; most patients had a mild COVID-19 infection. Twenty-five percent of infected patients during wave 4 did not seek medical advice. At wave 4, 87% of the patients received at least one dose of vaccine. Systematic compliance to shielding measures decreased over time. The short-term pattern of mild COVID changed between wave 1 and wave 4. Twenty-two percent of infected patients experienced persistent signs for more than 6 months with a negative impact on sleep, social behavior, and increased consumption of stress-relieving drugs. Our results showed a high prevalence of long-lasting symptoms in cancer patients with mild COVID-19 infection and inadequate behavior toward the disease and prevention measures among patients.

Long COVID in Children, Adults, and Vulnerable Populations: A Comprehensive Overview for an Integrated Approach

“…While there is certainty about the incidence of PASC in cancer patients, it is more challenging to accurately gauge the extent of the problem and to better characterize its symptoms. As the frequency and presentation of acute COVID-19 signs and symptoms varied between early and late waves, the same observation applies to SARS-CoV-2 sequelae, with inconsistent data across different studies [246,254], likely due to various SARS-CoV-2 variants, patient adherence to shielding measures, and vaccine availability. Similarly, in cancer patients, it can be challenging to differentiate the origin of some symptoms.…”

“…An original paper was the result of a longitudinal online survey performed during the pandemic in a large cohort of cancer patients [254]. Cohort 2 was designed to investigate symptoms lasting more than 6 months, with 37 patients evaluated, 11 of whom were not vaccinated.…”

A systematic review of the evidence on the associations and safety of COVID-19 vaccination and post COVID-19 condition

“…The reference lists of five relevant review articles were searched as part of search verification [ 8 – 10 , 15 , 16 ]. This process yielded two studies that were subsequently included within the screening process [ 17 , 18 ].…”

The effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccine in the prevention of post-COVID conditions: a systematic literature review and meta-analysis of the latest research

“…Thirty-two studies met the inclusion criteria [14][15][16][17] and were included in the final review (Table 1). All studies were nonrandomized [14][15][16][17] ; of these, fourteen were retrospective cohort studies, 15,25,[29][30][31]35,36,40,[44][45][46]48,49,51 nine were prospective cohort studies 14,16,28,32,34,37,38,41,50 , five were cross-sectional studies, 17,24,42,43,47 and four were case-control studies. 26,27,33,39 One of the cross-sectional studies was also within a prospective cohort study.…”

“…One-quarter of the studies included in our review were conducted in the United States (8 studies). 25,36,41,43,45,48,50,51 Seven studies were performed in the United Kingdom, 26,27,29,40,44,46,49 three in Switzerland, 17,31,42 two in India, 28,47 and one of each was performed in Brazil, 39 France, 34 Israel, 38 Italy, 30 Morocco, 33 Netherlands, 16 Norway, 32 Saudi Arabia, 24 Scotland, 35 South Africa, 37 Spain, 15 and Turkey. 14 All studies were performed between February 2020 and April 2023.…”