Pandemic Could Cause Thousands of Additional U.K. Cancer Deaths

(Bloomberg) -- Thousands more lives could be lost to cancer in England over the next five years due to delays in diagnosis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, new research predicts.

Cancer screening and routine outpatient referral pathways were suspended during the U.K.’s Covid-19 lockdown. Even urgent referrals fell by as much as 80% due to physical distancing measures. As the backlog grows, around 3,500 additional cancer deaths could occur by 2025 in the most common cancers in the U.K., which affect the breast, lungs, bowels and esophagus.

Urgent policy interventions are needed to manage the disruptions to diagnostic services, according to the authors of the research, published in The Lancet. Policy makers should focus on increasing referrals as well as increase public health messaging that encourages patients to seek health-care advice for symptoms of cancer, the authors recommended.

“On average, for each avoidable cancer death due to diagnostic delay, 20 years of life will be lost,” said co-author Richard Sullivan, a professor at King’s College London. “These estimates paint a sobering picture and reflect the many young people who are affected by cancer in the prime of life during their most productive years.”

The authors note that the number of excess deaths from cancer overall is likely to be much higher as the study does not account for delayed or canceled treatments for those who have already been diagnosed with cancer.

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