Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the demographic and disease burden of pediatric malignant solid tumors in China: a single-center, cross-sectional study

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Abstract

Background

With the development of the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), China implemented measures in an attempt to control the infection rate. We conducted a single-center, cross-sectional study to ascertain the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the equitable availability of medical resources for children diagnosed with malignant solid tumors in China.

Methods

Data on the demographics, clinical characteristics, and medical expenses of 876 patients diagnosed with neuroblastoma, rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS), Wilms tumor, hepatoblastoma (HB), Ewing sarcoma (ES), and central nervous system (CNS) tumors from 2019 to 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, were retrospectively collected from the National Center for Children’s Health. The Pearson χ ² test and Mann-Whitney test were performed to analyze the differences among variables.

Results

Except for the regional origin of children with tumors during the epidemic, no significant differences were found in the demographic or clinical characteristics of patients at initial diagnosis. The number of patients from northern China and northeastern China who attended Beijing Children’s Hospital (BCH) increased after the outbreak of COVID-19 (P=0.001). There was no significant alteration observed in the frequency of hospitalizations per individual per annum (P=0.641) or the mean expense incurred per individual per hospitalization (P=0.361). In addition, the medical insurance coverage rate of real-time settlement increased year by year.

Conclusions

After the COVID-19 outbreak, the origin of patients with solid tumor who visited BCH was concentrated in the northern region of China. COVID-19 had no impact on the other demographic factors, clinical characteristics, or economic burden of patients with pediatric malignant solid tumors.

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Most cited references 31

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Clinical features of patients infected with 2019 novel coronavirus in Wuhan, China

Chaolin Huang, Yeming Wang, Xingwang Li … (2020)

Summary Background A recent cluster of pneumonia cases in Wuhan, China, was caused by a novel betacoronavirus, the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV). We report the epidemiological, clinical, laboratory, and radiological characteristics and treatment and clinical outcomes of these patients. Methods All patients with suspected 2019-nCoV were admitted to a designated hospital in Wuhan. We prospectively collected and analysed data on patients with laboratory-confirmed 2019-nCoV infection by real-time RT-PCR and next-generation sequencing. Data were obtained with standardised data collection forms shared by WHO and the International Severe Acute Respiratory and Emerging Infection Consortium from electronic medical records. Researchers also directly communicated with patients or their families to ascertain epidemiological and symptom data. Outcomes were also compared between patients who had been admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) and those who had not. Findings By Jan 2, 2020, 41 admitted hospital patients had been identified as having laboratory-confirmed 2019-nCoV infection. Most of the infected patients were men (30 [73%] of 41); less than half had underlying diseases (13 [32%]), including diabetes (eight [20%]), hypertension (six [15%]), and cardiovascular disease (six [15%]). Median age was 49·0 years (IQR 41·0–58·0). 27 (66%) of 41 patients had been exposed to Huanan seafood market. One family cluster was found. Common symptoms at onset of illness were fever (40 [98%] of 41 patients), cough (31 [76%]), and myalgia or fatigue (18 [44%]); less common symptoms were sputum production (11 [28%] of 39), headache (three [8%] of 38), haemoptysis (two [5%] of 39), and diarrhoea (one [3%] of 38). Dyspnoea developed in 22 (55%) of 40 patients (median time from illness onset to dyspnoea 8·0 days [IQR 5·0–13·0]). 26 (63%) of 41 patients had lymphopenia. All 41 patients had pneumonia with abnormal findings on chest CT. Complications included acute respiratory distress syndrome (12 [29%]), RNAaemia (six [15%]), acute cardiac injury (five [12%]) and secondary infection (four [10%]). 13 (32%) patients were admitted to an ICU and six (15%) died. Compared with non-ICU patients, ICU patients had higher plasma levels of IL2, IL7, IL10, GSCF, IP10, MCP1, MIP1A, and TNFα. Interpretation The 2019-nCoV infection caused clusters of severe respiratory illness similar to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus and was associated with ICU admission and high mortality. Major gaps in our knowledge of the origin, epidemiology, duration of human transmission, and clinical spectrum of disease need fulfilment by future studies. Funding Ministry of Science and Technology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, National Natural Science Foundation of China, and Beijing Municipal Science and Technology Commission.

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Epidemiological and clinical characteristics of 99 cases of 2019 novel coronavirus pneumonia in Wuhan, China: a descriptive study

Nanshan Chen, Min Zhou, Xuan Dong … (2022)

Summary Background In December, 2019, a pneumonia associated with the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) emerged in Wuhan, China. We aimed to further clarify the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of 2019-nCoV pneumonia. Methods In this retrospective, single-centre study, we included all confirmed cases of 2019-nCoV in Wuhan Jinyintan Hospital from Jan 1 to Jan 20, 2020. Cases were confirmed by real-time RT-PCR and were analysed for epidemiological, demographic, clinical, and radiological features and laboratory data. Outcomes were followed up until Jan 25, 2020. Findings Of the 99 patients with 2019-nCoV pneumonia, 49 (49%) had a history of exposure to the Huanan seafood market. The average age of the patients was 55·5 years (SD 13·1), including 67 men and 32 women. 2019-nCoV was detected in all patients by real-time RT-PCR. 50 (51%) patients had chronic diseases. Patients had clinical manifestations of fever (82 [83%] patients), cough (81 [82%] patients), shortness of breath (31 [31%] patients), muscle ache (11 [11%] patients), confusion (nine [9%] patients), headache (eight [8%] patients), sore throat (five [5%] patients), rhinorrhoea (four [4%] patients), chest pain (two [2%] patients), diarrhoea (two [2%] patients), and nausea and vomiting (one [1%] patient). According to imaging examination, 74 (75%) patients showed bilateral pneumonia, 14 (14%) patients showed multiple mottling and ground-glass opacity, and one (1%) patient had pneumothorax. 17 (17%) patients developed acute respiratory distress syndrome and, among them, 11 (11%) patients worsened in a short period of time and died of multiple organ failure. Interpretation The 2019-nCoV infection was of clustering onset, is more likely to affect older males with comorbidities, and can result in severe and even fatal respiratory diseases such as acute respiratory distress syndrome. In general, characteristics of patients who died were in line with the MuLBSTA score, an early warning model for predicting mortality in viral pneumonia. Further investigation is needed to explore the applicability of the MuLBSTA score in predicting the risk of mortality in 2019-nCoV infection. Funding National Key R&D Program of China.

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The 2021 WHO Classification of Tumors of the Central Nervous System: a summary

David N Louis, Arie Perry, Pieter Wesseling … (2021)

The fifth edition of the WHO Classification of Tumors of the Central Nervous System (CNS), published in 2021, is the sixth version of the international standard for the classification of brain and spinal cord tumors. Building on the 2016 updated fourth edition and the work of the Consortium to Inform Molecular and Practical Approaches to CNS Tumor Taxonomy, the 2021 fifth edition introduces major changes that advance the role of molecular diagnostics in CNS tumor classification. At the same time, it remains wedded to other established approaches to tumor diagnosis such as histology and immunohistochemistry. In doing so, the fifth edition establishes some different approaches to both CNS tumor nomenclature and grading and it emphasizes the importance of integrated diagnoses and layered reports. New tumor types and subtypes are introduced, some based on novel diagnostic technologies such as DNA methylome profiling. The present review summarizes the major general changes in the 2021 fifth edition classification and the specific changes in each taxonomic category. It is hoped that this summary provides an overview to facilitate more in-depth exploration of the entire fifth edition of the WHO Classification of Tumors of the Central Nervous System.

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Author and article information

Journal

Journal ID (nlm-ta): Transl Pediatr

Journal ID (iso-abbrev): Transl Pediatr

Journal ID (publisher-id): TP

Title: Translational Pediatrics

Publisher: AME Publishing Company

ISSN (Print): 2224-4336

ISSN (Electronic): 2224-4344

Publication date (Electronic): 14 March 2024

Publication date (Print): 27 March 2024

Volume: 13

Issue: 3

Pages: 387-398

Affiliations

[1 ]Beijing Key Laboratory for Pediatric Diseases of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, MOE Key Laboratory of Major Diseases in Children, Beijing Pediatric Research Institute, Beijing Children’s Hospital, Capital Medical University , deptNational Center for Children’s Health , Beijing, China;

[2 ]Medical Oncology Department, Pediatric Oncology Center, Beijing Children’s Hospital, Capital Medical University, National Center for Children’s Health, Beijing Key Laboratory of Pediatric Hematology Oncology, National Key Clinical Discipline of Pediatric Oncology, Key Laboratory of Major Diseases in Children , deptMinistry of Education , Beijing, China;

[3 ]Big Data Center, Beijing Children’s Hospital, Capital Medical University , deptNational Center for Children’s Health , Beijing, China;

[4 ]Futang Research Center of Pediatric Development (FRCPD) , Beijing, China

Author notes

Contributions: (I) Conception and design: C Jiang, Y Yang, W Yang; (II) Administrative support: X Ma, Y Su, Y Guo; (III) Provision of study materials or patients: B Jian, W Zhao, S He, Xisi Wang, S Zhang, C Huang; (IV) Collection and assembly of data: C Duan, Q Zhao, P Yang; (V) Data analysis and interpretation: P Chu, Xinyu Wang, G Ma; (VI) Manuscript writing: All authors; (VII) Final approval of manuscript: All authors.

[#]

These authors contributed equally to this work as co-first authors.

Correspondence to: Yongli Guo, PhD. Beijing Key Laboratory for Pediatric Diseases of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, MOE Key Laboratory of Major Diseases in Children, Beijing Pediatric Research Institute, Beijing Children’s Hospital, Capital Medical University, National Center for Children’s Health, 56 Nanlishi Road, Xicheng District, Beijing 100045, China. Email: guoyongli@ 123456bch.com.cn ; Yan Su, MD. Medical Oncology Department, Pediatric Oncology Center, Beijing Children’s Hospital, Capital Medical University, National Center for Children’s Health, Beijing Key Laboratory of Pediatric Hematology Oncology, National Key Clinical Discipline of Pediatric Oncology, Key Laboratory of Major Diseases in Children, Ministry of Education, 56 Nanlishi Road, Xicheng District, Beijing 100045, China. Email: suyanbch@ 123456sina.com .

Article

Publisher ID: tp-13-03-387

DOI: 10.21037/tp-23-480

PMC ID: 10998988

PubMed ID: 38590381

SO-VID: 799fb698-6f26-496b-b05f-6d0d7ab7f1d4

License:

Open Access Statement: This is an Open Access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0), which permits the non-commercial replication and distribution of the article with the strict proviso that no changes or edits are made and the original work is properly cited (including links to both the formal publication through the relevant DOI and the license). See: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0.

History

Date received : 14 September 2023

Date accepted : 06 January 2024

Funding

Funded by: Beijing Research Ward Demonstration Unit

Award ID: No. BCRW202101

Funded by: the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Integration Project (No. J200004), and the Beijing Natural Science Foundation

Award ID: No. 7222054

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the demographic and disease burden of pediatric malignant solid tumors in China: a single-center, cross-sectional study

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Abstract

Background

Methods

Results

Conclusions

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Novel Coronavirus Disease COVID-19

Most cited references 31

Clinical features of patients infected with 2019 novel coronavirus in Wuhan, China

Epidemiological and clinical characteristics of 99 cases of 2019 novel coronavirus pneumonia in Wuhan, China: a descriptive study

The 2021 WHO Classification of Tumors of the Central Nervous System: a summary

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