COVID-19 in PAEDIATRIC ONCOLOGY PATIENTS: INCIDENCE AND SEVERITY OF CLINICAL FEATURES IN CANCER VS.

Abstract

Introduction: With the advancements in medical technology, it is now possible to treat deadly diseases like cancer. The drawback of these anticancer treatments is the significantly reduced host’s immune response, which makes these individuals more susceptible to infections. In this study, we analyzed the incidence and clinical features of COVID-19 infections among paediatric cancer patients, and the results were compared to those of non-cancer paediatric patients. Method: This was an observational, retrospective cross-sectional study. For data gathering, patients' charts were retrospectively analyzed from March 2020 to Feb 2021, and the two groups (COVID-19 infections in paediatric cancer and non-cancer patients) were compared to analyze the incidence and severity of SARS-COV-2 infection and severity of clinical features. The Wilcoxon-Mann-Whitney test was used to compare the means of symptoms and severity of symptoms of two groups, keeping the p-value <0.05 as significant. Result: Out of the total study population (772), 618 patients were diagnosed with cancer. A total of 53 patients (6.8%) were reported positive for COVID-19, with the break of 35 (5.6%) cancer patients, and 18 (11.7%) non-cancer patients. The mean age of cancer patients with COVID-19 was 7.17 years (range 3-17 years) while of non-cancer patients was 10.6 years (range 2-17 years). 22 patients required hospitalization (62.85%) with an average length of stay of 4.45 days. There was a mortality of one cancer patient with COVID-19. In non-cancer patients, no hospitalization was required with zero mortality. Conclusion: COVID-19 is more common in the general pediatric population while the infection is more severe in pediatric cancer patients.