Delays in cancer screening during the COVID-19 pandemic will likely cause a significant increase in cancer cases that could have been caught earlier with screening, and may now be diagnosed at later stages, placing an increased burden on an already strained healthcare system, according to a new research article published in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons.
Current screening protocols fail to catch a notable number of people carrying genetic mutations associated with hereditary breast and ovarian cancer syndrome and Lynch syndrome, which increase the risk of developing certain cancers. This issue is particularly pronounced among underrepresented minorities.
