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Research Article
Montse Vidal Garcia
Catalan Institute of Oncology: Institut Catala d' Oncologia
Corresponding Author
ORCiD: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3437-3185
License:
This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License. Read Full License
Background
By mid-March 2020, colorectal cancer (CRC) screening program in Catalonia was suspended at all levels. Our goal was to assess the short-term impact of the COVID-19 pandemic at a FIT-based CRC screening hub in the metropolitan area of Barcelona.
Methods
Short-term impact was measured in individuals invited between 1 January and 12 March 2020: screening participation, colonoscopy adherence, interval from positive test result to colonoscopy and psychological distress.
Results
Lockdown with the first wave of COVID-19 caused 111,000 individuals to defer their screening invitations. Participation among invitees between January - March 2020 was 39.3% (95% CI: 38.9–39.7), a decrease of 5% in comparison with the 41.4% (95% CI: 41.2–41.6) participation in 2019. Adherence to colonoscopy decreased from 89.3% (95% CI: 88.4–90.2) in 2019 to 81.4% (95% CI: 78.9–83.7) in the first quarter of 2020. The mean time to colonoscopy after resumption was 128.7 days (CI 95%: 125.3–132.2). Irrespective of test results, factors associated with higher levels of distress were a greater perceived risk of CRC and greater impairment of emotional wellbeing due to COVID-19.
Conclusions
The short-term impact of COVID-19 on CRC screening seems to have been modest, with a slight decrease in participation, a moderate decrease in colonoscopy adherence, and lengthened waiting times. However, a marked impact on future CRC incidence and deaths could be expected. Thus, it is critical to revert participation and colonoscopy adherence rates to that previously achieved while reducing the 5-month delay in screening invitations.
Keywords
COVID-19, coronavirus, colorectal cancer, screening, colonoscopy, fecal immunochemical test
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This is a list of supplementary files associated with this preprint. Click to download.
- FigSupplementary.tif
Supplementary Figure. Algorithm of the procedure from detection of a positive FIT result to performance of diagnostic colonoscopy * Registry of FIT-positive participants with real-time updates;** Risks and bowel preparation explained
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A new preprint design is coming!
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This is a preprint, a preliminary version of a manuscript that has not completed peer review at a journal. Research Square does not conduct peer review prior to posting preprints. The posting of a preprint on this server should not be interpreted as an endorsement of its validity or suitability for dissemination as established information or for guiding clinical practice.
Research Article
Montse Vidal Garcia
Catalan Institute of Oncology: Institut Catala d' Oncologia
Corresponding Author
ORCiD: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3437-3185
Badges
Prescreen
This manuscript passed our Prescreen assessment
Complete author information
Appropriate declaration statements
Potential risks to human health
Prescreen
History
CURRENT STATUS: Posted
View the published article at Preventive Medicine.
Version 1
Posted 10 Jun, 2021
No community comments so far
Metrics
Comments: 0
PDF Downloads: ...
HTML Views: ...
License:
This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License. Read Full License
View the published article at Preventive Medicine.
Background
By mid-March 2020, colorectal cancer (CRC) screening program in Catalonia was suspended at all levels. Our goal was to assess the short-term impact of the COVID-19 pandemic at a FIT-based CRC screening hub in the metropolitan area of Barcelona.
Methods
Short-term impact was measured in individuals invited between 1 January and 12 March 2020: screening participation, colonoscopy adherence, interval from positive test result to colonoscopy and psychological distress.
Results
Lockdown with the first wave of COVID-19 caused 111,000 individuals to defer their screening invitations. Participation among invitees between January - March 2020 was 39.3% (95% CI: 38.9–39.7), a decrease of 5% in comparison with the 41.4% (95% CI: 41.2–41.6) participation in 2019. Adherence to colonoscopy decreased from 89.3% (95% CI: 88.4–90.2) in 2019 to 81.4% (95% CI: 78.9–83.7) in the first quarter of 2020. The mean time to colonoscopy after resumption was 128.7 days (CI 95%: 125.3–132.2). Irrespective of test results, factors associated with higher levels of distress were a greater perceived risk of CRC and greater impairment of emotional wellbeing due to COVID-19.
Conclusions
The short-term impact of COVID-19 on CRC screening seems to have been modest, with a slight decrease in participation, a moderate decrease in colonoscopy adherence, and lengthened waiting times. However, a marked impact on future CRC incidence and deaths could be expected. Thus, it is critical to revert participation and colonoscopy adherence rates to that previously achieved while reducing the 5-month delay in screening invitations.
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
This is a list of supplementary files associated with this preprint. Click to download.
- FigSupplementary.tif
Supplementary Figure. Algorithm of the procedure from detection of a positive FIT result to performance of diagnostic colonoscopy * Registry of FIT-positive participants with real-time updates;** Risks and bowel preparation explained
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