Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on cancer care in OECD countries

The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted primary and secondary prevention efforts as well as routine cancer care including diagnosis and treatment. The number of cancer-related procedures declined across countries. Many of the OECD countries also faced challenges in maintaining and further improving cancer care quality and outcomes during the pandemic. This paper compiles initial findings from a subset of OECD countries covering the period from March 2020 to August 2021. It illustrates how several of these countries attempted to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on cancer care systems. There have been examples of adapting treatment guidelines, changing clinical practices and reducing backlogs to minimise negative impacts of the pandemic on cancer patients. Several of the countries also undertook more frequent monitoring and in-depth analysis of cancer care performance. The analyses confirm that strong health information infrastructure is crucial for developing resilient health systems that provide effective, timely and people-centred cancer care.