Background: Patients with cancer are hypothesised to be at increased risk of contracting COVID-19, leading to changes in treatment pathways in those treated with systemic anti-cancer treatments (SACT) This study investigated the outcomes of patients receiving SACT to assess whether they were at greater risk of contracting COVID-19 or having more severe outcomes Methods: Data was collected from all patients receiving SACT in two cancer centres as part of CAPITOL (COVID-19 Cancer PatIenT Outcomes in North London) The primary outcome was the effect of clinical characteristics on the incidence and severity of COVID-19 infection in patients on SACT We used univariable and multivariable models to analyse outcomes, adjusting for age, gender and comorbidities Results: A total of 2871 patients receiving SACT from 2 March to 31 May 2020 were analysed;68 (2 4%) were diagnosed with COVID-19 Cancer patients receiving SACT were more likely to die if they contracted COVID-19 than those who did not [adjusted (adj ) odds ratio (OR) 9 84;95% confidence interval (CI) 5 73–16 9] Receiving chemotherapy increased the risk of developing COVID-19 (adj OR 2 99;95% CI = 1 72–5 21), with high dose chemotherapy significantly increasing risk (adj OR 2 36, 95% CI 1 35–6 48), as did the presence of comorbidities (adj OR 2 29;95% CI 1 19–4 38), and having a respiratory or intrathoracic neoplasm (adj OR 2 12;95% CI 1 04–4 36) Receiving targeted treatment had a protective effect (adj OR 0 53;95% CI 0 30–0 95) Treatment intent (curative versus palliative), hormonal- or immunotherapy and solid versus haematological cancers had no significant effect on risk Conclusion: Patients on SACT are more likely to die if they contract COVID-19 Those on chemotherapy, particularly high dose chemotherapy, are more likely to contract COVID-19, while targeted treatment appears to be protective
COVID-19 in cancer patients on systemic anti-cancer therapies: outcomes from the CAPITOL (COVID-19 Cancer PatIenT Outcomes in North London) cohort study