Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on breast cancer management: Experience of a French Comprehensive Cancer Center

Introduction > The COVID-19 pandemic had a profound impact on health-care systems and reduced access to care. This study assays the mid-term effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on breast cancer management over a 2-year-period in a single French Comprehensive Cancer Center. Methods > We performed, in a French comprehensive cancer center, an observational study including all patients with newly diagnosed breast cancer between 2019 and 2021. We collected the number of first consultations for breast cancer, the number of breast and axillary surgeries, pTNM and ypTNM cancer staging, the therapeutic sequence (surgery or neoadjuvant chemo-therapy as a primary treatment), patients' age and their place of residence. Results > In total, 14,772 patients had a first consultation for breast cancer. Among these 9058 breast and axillary surgeries were performed, 1798 patients had neoadjuvant chemo-therapy as a primary treatment. During the first COVID-19 lockdown ( March17, 2020-May 10, 2020), we observed a reduction in the number of first consultations for breast cancer and breast cancer surgeries giving respectively a 42.3% and 27% rate of change. Subsequently, we observed a resumption of consultations and surgeries with a slight increase in early 2021 compared to 2019. In addition, we did not find any difference in terms of therapeutic sequence, pTNM and ypTNM stages, age at diagnosis or place of residence between the reference year 2019 and the years 2020 and 2021. Conclusion > Our study shows a decrease in activity during the first lockdown of 2020, then a resumption of activity. These reassuring results only concern patients with breast cancer, and are specific to our institution, whose oncology activity was preserved during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Automated summary

The study reveals a decrease in breast cancer activities during the first lockdown of 2020, followed by a recovery in early 2021. There were no significant differences found in treatment sequences, cancer stages, age at diagnosis, or place of residence between 2019 and 2020-2021.