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Effects of COVID-19 Pandemic on the Diagnosis of Melanoma and Keratinocyte Carcinomas: a Systematic Review and Meta-analysis
- Source :
- Acta Dermato-Venereologica, Vol 104 (2024)
- Publication Year :
- 2024
- Publisher :
- Medical Journals Sweden, 2024.
-
Abstract
- Since December 2019, the COVID-19 pandemic has profoundly affected healthcare. The real effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on skin cancer are still unclear, more than 3 years later. This study aims to summarise the pandemic’s impact on skin cancer diagnosis and outcome. A systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted, selecting studies comparing skin cancer diagnosis and prognosis post-pandemic with pre-pandemic data. A total of 27 papers were reviewed including 102,263 melanomas and 271,483 keratinocyte carcinomas. During the initial pandemic months (January–July 2020), melanoma surgeries dropped by 29.7% and keratinocyte carcinomas surgeries by 50.8%. Early pandemic tumours exhibited greater thickness and stage. In a long-term period beyond the initial months, melanoma surgeries decreased by 9.3%, keratinocyte carcinomas by 16.6%. No significant differences were observed in the Breslow thickness of melanomas after the start of the pandemic (mean difference 0.06, 95% confidence interval –0.46, 0.58). Melanomas operated on post-pandemic onset had an increased risk of ulceration (odds ratio 1.35, 95% confidence interval 1.22–1.50). Keratinocyte carcinomas showed increased thickness and worsened stage post-pandemic. However, studies included were mostly retrospective and cross-sectional, reporting diverse data. This review indicates that the pandemic likely caused delays in skin cancer diagnosis and treatment, potentially impacting patient outcomes.
- Subjects :
- melanoma
squamous cell carcinoma
basal cell carcinoma
COVID-19
Dermatology
RL1-803
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 00015555 and 16512057
- Volume :
- 104
- Database :
- Directory of Open Access Journals
- Journal :
- Acta Dermato-Venereologica
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- edsdoj.7e8d75af11264ec0a707e9889d2babe8
- Document Type :
- article
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.2340/actadv.v104.19460