COVID-19 Worries: Do You Feel Safe Getting Cancer Treatment?

I work with a number of patients who are currently going through cancer treatment, either adjuvant therapy for a new cancer that, hopefully, will be vanquished or ongoing treatment for a recurrent/metastatic cancer. In either case, the need to live with both cancer and coronavirus anxieties is incredibly hard. Some people are most afraid of the cancer, while others are more afraid of contracting the virus. Since people with underlying medical issues or who are immuno-suppressed are more likely to become seriously ill if they are infected, everyone should be concerned.

As we read about the potential for hospitals to become overwhelmed, it is easy to worry about how our planned cancer therapy will unfold. First, a strong reassurance: everyone understands that cancer treatment is vital, and it will also have a very high priority in medical planning. It will never be considered elective. While regular cancer check-ups — for patients who come in only once or twice a year and are doing fine — may be transitioned to telehealth or delayed some months, active treatments continue.

This is from a hospital-wide email about scheduling elective and non-urgent visits. Note that cancer treatment clearly is not included. "Non-urgent elective" encounters are defined here as any surgery, procedure or clinic visit that can be safely delayed or deferred, without threat to the immediate health/safety of our patients. All attempts will be made to reschedule these surgeries, procedures or clinic visits once we return to routine operational capacity.

You can also be reassured that all cancer centers, and other places where treatment is provided, are paying the utmost attention to the safety of their patients and their staff. The rules may vary a bit from place to place, but often no accompanying family or friends are permitted and you can expect to be asked a series of screening questions upon arrival. These include the usual queries about travel, possible exposure, any physical symptoms. You also probably will be given a mask and gloves to wear. At BIDMC, if a patient responds with any worrisome answers, s/he is sent to a different area of the hospital for further screening. This keeps everyone safer.

When you arrive at the treatment area waiting room, you likely will be screened a second time, and all efforts are made to keep waiting times very short. Patients are not left long in the waiting areas but are quickly escorted to an exam room or the Infusion Area. Again, everyone will be masked and gloved, and you will be safe. Since your family member or friend has not been allowed to be with you, attention will be paid to what time to make the phone call for the pick-up. Again, the focus will be on not lingering in the hospital any longer than necessary.

One woman with whom I work is in the midst of chemotherapy that requires a hospital admission every two weeks. She is there for three days each time. Her husband now drops her at the door and is waiting to take her home at the conclusion of her stay. In between, they can visit only virtually. She calls the morning of the planned admission to be sure that there is a bed available (and there always has been), and the system is going quite smoothly.

My other current patients who receive outpatient chemotherapy also report that they have been pleasantly surprised by the ease of the visits. One woman acknowledges that she is more anxious about possible exposure than about her cancer, and she plans to speak with her doctor about the wisdom of skipping a treatment or two. When we discussed this, I encouraged her to find out more regarding the safety precautions that are being taken at her treatment center and hope that she will be somewhat reassured when she learns more about them.

The bottom line here is that it is terribly difficult to be coping with, and worrying about, both possible COVID-19 exposure and cancer treatment. You can be confident that your doctors feel as strongly as you do about the importance of your receiving the best care, and that all careful strategies will be in place to ensure that your treatment can continue as planned.