More than 16,000 cancer deaths between March and December 2020 involved COVID-19 complications, according to a Sept. 28 American Cancer Society news release.
The study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association Oncology, involved analysis of 16,561 cancer-COVID-19 deaths in that time period using the Multiple Cause of Death database with death certificate information for U.S. residents. Researchers also found higher percentages of blood or prostate cancer deaths were from COVID-19 complications.
"Patients with hematological neoplasms or blood cancer and prostate cancer might be particularly vulnerable to COVID-19 complications and die from it," lead author Xuesong Han, PhD, scientific director of health services research at the American Cancer Society, said in the release. "It is important to further study these patient populations to develop care strategies that reduce the risk of contracting the COVID-19 virus as well as optimize disease management for patients with comorbid COVID-19 infection."