Izvorni znanstveni članak
https://doi.org/10.20471/acc.2024.63.s2.4
A Comparison of Prostate Biopsies Performed Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Stjepan Frkanec
; Department of Emergency medicine, University Hospital Centre Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Toni Zekulić
; Department of Urology, University Hospital Centre Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Hrvoje Saić
; Department of Urology, University Hospital Centre Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Ilija Jurić
; Department of Urology, University Hospital Centre Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Luka Penezić
; Department of Urology, University Hospital Centre Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Tvrtko Hudolin
; Department of Urology, University Hospital Centre Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia; University of Zagreb School of Medicine, Zagreb, Croatia
Tomislav Kuliš
; Department of Urology, University Hospital Centre Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia; University of Zagreb School of Medicine, Zagreb, Croati
*
Željko Kaštelan
; Department of Urology, University Hospital Centre Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia; University of Zagreb School of Medicine, Zagreb, Croati
* Dopisni autor.
Sažetak
Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men in developed countries, and
prostate biopsy is the gold standard for diagnosis. However, the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted medical
examinations, potentially leading to delays in diagnostic investigations, particularly for vulnerable
oncology patients. This study included a total of 2796 patients. Biopsies were performed from 2018 to
2021, with a division into pre-pandemic (2018-2019) and pandemic (2020-2021) periods. To compare
the two period and yearly data, we used the Chi-square test and the Cochran-Armitage trend test, respectively.
During the pandemic period, there was a 26.47% decrease in prostate biopsies compared with
pre-pandemic years. The percentage of patients diagnosed with GS 3+3 adenocarcinomas decreased by
37.93% and by 17.66% for GS ≥3+4 (p=0.0164). The percentage of decrease for systematic biopsy was
37.85%, while the percentage of targeted+systematic biopsy increased by 57.89% (p<0.0001). Although
the Department of Urology of the UHC Zagreb continued to perform prostate biopsies during the
COVID-19 pandemic without interruption, there was a noticeable decrease in the number of biopsies.
However, during the pandemic period, we observed an increased proportion of targeted biopsies and
a subsequent increase in the proportion of higher-grade adenocarcinoma (GS ≥3+4). The long-term
impact of the reduced number of biopsies and prostate cancer diagnoses is yet to be determined, but we
believe that this study could be a good starting point for further investigations on this topic.
Ključne riječi
Prostate cancer; Prostate biopsy; COVID-19; Pandemic
Hrčak ID:
323044
URI
Datum izdavanja:
30.4.2024.
Posjeta: 0 *