Professional Assessment of the Impact of COVID-19 on Handling NET Patients

Abstract

The treatment and monitoring of patients with neuroendocrine tumors (NET) has been a major challenge during the COVID-19 pandemic. In a survey, we investigated the influence of COVID-19 on the care of NET patients in the German speaking countries Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The multidisciplinarity of all treating physicians in the outpatient and inpatient sector was reflected in our survey. Furthermore, we were able to present findings pertaining to the university and non-university medical care. Overall, only a minority of appointments were cancelled, mostly as a result of medical prioritization and less for fear of infection by patients. In the university sector, longer delays for diagnostic measures were observed in comparison to non-university care. During the COVID-19 crisis, NET patients rarely changed their current therapy, but the pandemic impacted the assessment of the different treatment modalities at risk of developing severe COVID-19 disease. This survey provides the first real-world data on the treatment of NET patients from the physicians' perspective during the COVID-19 crisis. Despite delays in diagnostic procedures and outpatient appointments, only a minority of physicians foresee a major impact of COVID-19 on NET patient care.