"Cannot undergo surgery" due to spread of infection Cancer patient's voice of anxiety April 20 22:28
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Some hospitals have been forced to greatly limit medical treatment for non-infectious diseases such as postponing surgery due to infection of inpatients and medical staff with the new coronavirus. Patients and their families have been worried one after another by cancer patients' groups that they are “unsure about the future of treatment”.
At university hospitals and other places in each region, medical institutions are forced to greatly limit the medical treatment of patients other than infectious diseases due to the dedication of staff to treat patients infected with the new coronavirus and the outbreak of medical staff. Is coming out.
According to the "National Cancer Patient Association" created by cancer patient groups, surgery is postponed due to nosocomial infection of new coronavirus from cancer patients and their families mainly in urban areas such as the Tokyo metropolitan area. After the surgery, many voices said that they could not receive post-treatment with anti-cancer drugs to prevent the recurrence of the cancer after the surgery and that they could not predict the future of the treatment. It means that it is being done.
Shinsuke Amano, President of the National Federation of Cancer Patients Associations, said, “The current situation that cancers and life-threatening illnesses may not be able to receive the treatments that are usually received, and may not be helped, is not a matter. Moreover, in order to prevent the spread of new coronavirus infection and the collapse of medical treatment, I want many people to do things that they can do around themselves, such as refraining from going out. "
80% postponed surgery due to nurse infection
The Cancer Research Ariake Hospital in Koto Ward, Tokyo, is a medical facility that has to significantly limit medical treatments other than surgery and infectious diseases due to the infection of doctors, nurses, and hospitalized patients with the new coronavirus. This month, we started accepting cancer patients who need urgent surgery from the institution.
The Cancer Research Institute Ariake Hospital has the highest number of cancer patients in Japan, and has increased the number of times it can be operated by about 20% by making a temporary shift so that the operating room can be used on Saturdays and Sundays.
However, on the 19th, when I started accepting patients from another hospital in earnest, I found out that the nurses I work for were infected with the new coronavirus.
Approximately 110 doctors and nurses who came into contact with the staff were waiting at home, so there was not enough staff who could handle the surgery, and from the 20th onwards it was urgently necessary to postpone about 80% of the surgery. is.
“I had planned to perform many surgeries, but we decided to reduce the number of surgeries based on the idea that we would not spread the infection by any chance.” I would like to continue the surgery as much as possible and return to it after the health observation period of the staff waiting at home is over and I will be able to open the operating room during the long holidays and perform delayed surgery. "
Patient "I feel like I've been notified twice because of surgery cancellation"
A man in his 50s living in Tokyo was diagnosed with a parotid adenocarcinoma in the middle of last month at a university hospital in Tokyo, which produces saliva under the ear.
I was scheduled to undergo emergency surgery on 8th of this month because there was a risk of metastasis in the already advanced state, but on the 2nd of this month, 1 week before the surgery, my doctor who was hospitalized in the hospital was infected with the new coronavirus. I was told that I was doing it, and I was notified that I could not operate.
The man said, "I had felt that my cancer had grown larger for several weeks after I was diagnosed with it, so I wanted to have it cut off by surgery as soon as possible. When I was contacted to stop surgery, I felt more shocked than when I found the cancer and felt like I was dying, and it seems that I received the second cancer notification. "
After that, the attending doctor contacted the Cancer Research Ariake Hospital where the patient was accepted and was transferred to another hospital because it was an urgent surgery, and the man was able to undergo surgery on the 16th of this month.
The man said, "I'm really grateful, but I think I was lucky. Because of the new coronavirus, surgery at university hospitals has been suspended one after another, and there are many people in similar situations. Patients can't deal with it themselves, so I want them to create a system that allows them to receive treatment for serious diseases other than infectious diseases. "
Japanese Society of Surgical Guidelines for treatment priorities
The Japanese Society of Surgeons prioritizes treatment, saying that in situations where the medical system is under pressure due to the response to the new coronavirus, surgery should be postponed except for patients who are fatal unless surgery is performed within a few months. We have compiled a guide for this.
According to the guidelines released by the Japanese Surgical Society on 14th of this month, patients with urgent illnesses that are not mortal in areas where the medical system is under pressure or medical institutions, or potentially life-threatening or severely ill. However, for patients with illnesses that do not get worse immediately, surgery should be postponed even if they are not infected with the new coronavirus.
On the other hand, for patients with life-threatening illnesses that require surgery within a few days to several months, even if an infection has been confirmed or is suspected, “please perform surgery carefully with infection prevention measures. Should be done. "
He said that surgery should be done to the minimum extent necessary, and efforts should be made to reduce the burden on patients and the medical system while medical care is under pressure.
Information posted on the conference site For reference when consulting with your doctor
The Cancer Society of Japan has posted information on its website on how to deal with cancer patients who are likely to become seriously ill with the new coronavirus.
The treatment should be performed as scheduled, but it is said that an operation delay of about 4 weeks can be tolerated for early cancer, and I would like it to be consulted when consulting with the attending physician.
The Japanese Society of Clinical Oncology compiled information on cancer patients' response to the novel coronavirus and posted it on its website on the 14th.
Among them, there are reports that patients who have undergone anti-cancer drugs or surgery within the past month have a high risk of becoming seriously infected if infected.
On the other hand, if you do not have symptoms such as cough and fever, you should take the test for diagnosing cancer as planned, but you may consider postponing the test for 2 to 4 weeks in areas with high risk of infection. I am.
In addition, the planned surgery should be performed without delay, but it is possible to tolerate a delay of about 4 weeks in the case of early cancer, and the efficacy of anticancer drug treatment will not be reduced. It shows that there are possible ways to reduce the number of times.
In addition, I would like you to contact your doctor if you have a symptom of suspected infection such as cough or fever.
President Chikafumi Ishioka of the academic society said, "Because there is not much information, many patients are worried about whether they can continue treatment.