Abstract
In this letter, the psychological impact of COVID-19 on cancer infected patients is discussed. Cancer is a serious health-related problem nowadays. The 2019 pandemic of coronavirus disease has developed into an unheard-of pandemic. Given the havoc wreaked by this pathogen worldwide, many countries have implemented a severe, legally enforced method of social distancing, in the form of a lockdown. Unless adequate preventive measures are taken, the cost of the pandemic and subsequent lockdown can prove to be irreparable. The obvious consequences of this lockout, such as the escalating levels of unemployment, imminent economic crisis, and extreme food scarcity faced by the sudden unemployed migrant labour population, have been widely reported. Cancer patients are a highly vulnerable group even during non-pandemic periods, often presenting late in the course of their illness, without the services required to avail recommended care. The incidence of psychological complications and emotional distress is considerably higher in cancer patients than in the general population, and the trauma of both the pandemic and subsequent lockdown contributes significantly to their mental trauma. This analysis is geared at solving the challenges faced by cancer patients in the face of this pandemic and subsequent lockdown, with a look at potential solutions that can be enforced.
Keywords: COVID-19, coronavirus, pandemic, outbreak, china, WHO.
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