Impact of COVID-19 on Hepatocellular Carcinoma Management: A Multicountry and Region Study

The COVID-19 pandemic has altered healthcare priorities which may adversely impact cancer management. We aimed to evaluate the impact of the pandemic on the diagnosis, treatment, and consultation methods for patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). We conducted a survey among 27 hospitals from 14 Asia-Pacific countries, collecting hospital-level information on the number of newly diagnosed HCC cases during a pre-pandemic period (February to May 2019) and for the same period during the pandemic (February to May 2020). Information was also collected on delays in diagnosis and treatment, changes in treatment modalities and complication rates, changes in patient enrollment in clinical trials, and modes of patient consultation. The information was stratified by the Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC) stage. The survey included cohorts of 2789 and 2045 patients newly diagnosed with HCC during the pre- and pandemic period, respectively. A decline of 26.7% in new HCC cases was reported during the pandemic compared to the pre-pandemic. A sizable proportion of institutions reported delays in diagnosis (48.2% in BCLC 0/A/B and 51.9% in BCLC C), delays in treatment (66.7% in BCLC 0/A/B and 63.0% in BCLC C), changes in treatment modality (33.3% in BCLC 0/A/B and 18.5% in BCLC C), an increase in treatment complications (about 15% across all BCLC stages), and no growth in clinical trial enrollments during the pandemic. Furthermore, there was a decline of 27.3% in face-to-face patient consultations and an increase of 18.3% in video/telephonic consultations during the pandemic. A considerable variation in changes in HCC management was observed among countries. The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted the management of HCC among Asia-Pacific countries. The impact varies according to the disease stage and country. Well thought-through long-term strategies are required to ameliorate the negative impact of the pandemic on HCC patients.