Cancer in the time of COVID-19: expert opinion on how to adapt current practice

The susceptibility of cancer patients to the adverse outcomes of viral infections is well known from past experiences: influenza increases the risk of hospital admission with respiratory distress four times, and the risk of death 10 times, compared with patients without cancer [1]. This risk is particularly elevated in patients with neutropenia or lymphopenia, which is often the case in patients treated with chemotherapy. In Wuhan, China, 1% of patients with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) were reported to suffer from cancer, which is more than three times the incidence of cancer in the Chinese population in 2015 [2]. In addition, in 39% of cancer patients (compared with 8% of patients without cancer), transfer to the intensive care unit was necessary, with their illness deteriorating more rapidly (13 versus 43 days to severe event) [2]. Chemotherapy or surgery