Wellness & Fitness

Dealing with cancer during Covid-19 spread

corona

I was scheduled for cancer related diagnostic tests, do I have a window to postpone the tests?

There are no prescriptive answers. This depends on your cancer and the type of surgery and tests you have planned. It is therefore important to discuss this with your oncologist.

I had just been diagnosed with cancer, do I have a window to delay starting my treatment or is this specific to the stage of the cancer?

For some cancers, you can wait, for others, treatment needs to start very quickly and you need to have appropriate tests to ensure that your overall health is not being compromised by the cancer and the rate of its growth.

Please talk with your oncologist to determine whether you can wait. I encourage patients to ensure that they stay in touch with their doctors via tele-consultation service to ensure they can be monitored. You can take advantage of new services such as mobile laboratory, that hospitals have introduced to have your blood drawn at home and have the results available to your doctor.

Does continued chemotherapy affect weaken my immunity therefore compromising me for Covid-19?

We know that all patients who are immunocompromised (those with a weak immune system from chronic disease as well as those who become immunocompromised due to treatment) are at risk for infections, including Covid-19.

On the other hand, if chemotherapy is life saving and life preserving, we would like to stay on schedule.

Especially for those patients for whom treatment is curative. Please remember, the Covid-19 does not have wings. We cannot get the infection if we are not exposed to people who are infected. Our weakened immune system may predispose us to the infection, but we cannot get infected if we stay away from those who may be carrying the infection.

Due the lockdown, does reducing the number of times I go in for chemotherapy or radiotherapy affect my treatment?

It is important to discuss this with your doctors because there are guidelines as to what treatment should continue on track and what treatments can be postponed.

At Aga Khan University Hospital in Nairobi for example, we are keeping in touch with our patients via tele-consultation to ensure they are receiving the correct advise in regards to their scheduled treatment. The doctors are aware of who needs to stay on schedule and when it is possible to hold treatment.

I had a scheduled surgery to remove a tumour, can this wait? Which types of surgeries need to be done now and which can wait?

You want to avoid exposure to the virus, which means, that which can be postponed should be postponed. However, know that this Covid-19 environment will last for some weeks and maybe months. Therefore, please discuss the surgery with your doctor, who can determine the seriousness and urgency of the procedure. That which is necessary should be done. As physicians, we are dedicated to ensure that our patients received treatment when they need it.

I have just finished my treatment plan and was scheduled for review, do I have a window to delay the review?

Reviews can be done via tele-consultation and this would avoid exposure to the virus and also can be done from the comfort of your home. Please do make use of that.

Are there special precaution that cancer patients should take?

All cancer patients including cancer survivors and patients not actively receiving cancer medication, like all other individuals should follow basic health precautions given below to avoid getting infected:

- Practice social distancing

- Wash your hands frequently with soap and water or alcohol based sanitiser

- Avoid touching your face

- Cover your mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing

- Avoiding others who are unwell

- Report any symptoms of cough, flu-like symptoms or fever to your doctor immediately

Prof Masoor Saleh is the Chair of the Oncology Department at Aga Khan University Hospital, Nairobi