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Background: Due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) pandemic, cancer screening, diagnosis, and treatment have changed. This study aimed to investigate the impact of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2) infection prior to gastroenterological cancer surgeries on postoperative complications using data from a nationwide database in Japan. Methods: Data on patients who underwent surgery for cancer including esophageal, gastric, colon, rectal, liver, and pancreatic cancer between July 1, 2019, and September 300, 2022, from real‐world sources in Japan were analyzed. The association between preoperative SARS‐CoV‐2 infection and short‐term postoperative outcomes was evaluated. A similar analysis stratified according to the interval from SARS‐CoV‐2 infection to surgery (<4 vs. >4 weeks) was conducted. Results: In total, 60 604 patients were analyzed, and 227 (0.4%) patients were diagnosed with SARS‐CoV‐2 infection preoperatively. The median interval from SARS‐CoV‐2 infection to surgery was 25 days. Patients diagnosed with SARS‐CoV‐2 infection preoperatively had a significantly higher incidence of pneumonia (odds ratio: 2.05; 95% confidence interval: 1.05–3.74; p = 0.036) than those not diagnosed with SARS‐CoV‐2 infection based on the exact logistic regression analysis adjusted for the characteristics of the patients. A similar finding was observed in patients who had SARS‐CoV‐2 infection <4 weeks before surgery. Conclusions: Patients with a history of SARS‐CoV‐2 infection had a significantly higher incidence of pneumonia. This finding can be particularly valuable for countries that have implemented strict regulations in response to the COVID‐19 pandemic and have lower SARS‐CoV‐2 infection‐related mortality rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) pandemic greatly impacted medical resources such as cancer screening, diagnosis, and treatment given to people for various diseases. We surveyed the impacts of the pandemic on the incidence of complications and mortality following pancreaticoduodenectomy for pancreatic cancer in Japan. Methods: Data on patients who underwent pancreaticoduodenectomy for pancreatic cancer were extracted from the Japanese National Clinical Database (NCD) between 2018 and 2021. The number of the pancreaticoduodenectomy for pancreatic cancer were obtained and then the morbidity and mortality rates were evaluated using a standardized morbidity/mortality ratio (SMR), which is the ratio of the observed number of incidences to the expected number of incidences calculated by the risk calculator previously developed by the NCD. Results: This study included 22 255 cases. The number of pancreaticoduodenectomies exhibited an increasing trend even during the COVID‐19 pandemic. The mean observed incidence rates of Grade C pancreatic fistula and Clavien–Dindo grade ≥4 complications, and the 30‐day mortality and surgical mortality rates were 0.8%, 1.8%, 0.8% and 0.9%, respectively. The standardized morbidity ratios did not increase during the COVID‐19 pandemic. The standardized mortality ratios remained within the range of variations observed before the COVID‐19 pandemic. Conclusion: The increasing trend in the number of pancreaticoduodenectomies and favorable short‐term outcomes even in the COVID‐19 pandemic suggest the medical care for pancreatic cancer in Japan functioned well during the pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID‐19) pandemic affected the allocation of various medical resources to several areas, including intensive care units (ICUs). However, currently, its impact on the short‐term postoperative outcomes of gastrointestinal cancer surgeries remains unclear. We aimed to evaluate the impact of the pandemic on the incidence of complications occurring after low anterior resection in patients with rectal cancer in Japan. Methods: Data from the Japanese National Clinical Database between 2018 and 2021 were retrospectively examined. The primary outcome of the study was the postoperative morbidity and mortality rates before and after COVID‐19 pandemic. Moreover, the postoperative ICU admission rate was assessed. Morbidity and mortality rates were also assessed using a standardized morbidity/mortality ratio (SMR, the ratio of the actual number of incidences to the expected number of incidences calculated by the risk calculator). Results: This study included 74 181 patients, including 43 663 (58.9%) from COVID‐19 epidemic areas. The mean actual incidences of anastomotic leakage (AL) and pneumonia during the study period were 9.2% and 0.9%, respectively. The SMRs of these complications did not increase during the pandemic but those of AL declined gradually. The mean 30‐day mortality and operative mortality rates were 0.3% and 0.5%, respectively. Moreover, SMRs did not change significantly in the pandemic or regional epidemic status. The ICU admission rate temporarily decreased, especially in the epidemic areas. Conclusion: Although the pandemic temporarily decreased the ICU admission rate, its impact on short‐term outcomes following low anterior resection in patients with rectal cancer was insignificant in Japan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]