Corona Virus: H&B’s Guide For Cancer Patients, Survivors and Caretakers

All You Need To Know About Corona Virus and How to Stay Healthy

We at H&B recognize there is a huge amount of (mis)information floating around online about the recent events regarding the corona virus. All of this can be overwhelming as some of the information offered through thousands of sources is sometimes conflicting. This can cause even more worry,  stress, or even generate panic, which is for sure in nobodies best interest. It is important that people can access information from reliable, easy to understand sources. 

This is why we at H&B decided to make this short but informative guide on corona virus, keeping in mind cancer patient’s specific concerns.

Corona virus (COVID-19) is a new strain of corona virus first identified in Wuhan City, China in December 2019. Corona viruses are known to medical scientists since the 1960s when the first viruses from the group of viruses named Corona were discovered. The term comes from the specific shape of these viruses, that looks like a crown (corona) when viewed through a microscope. 

Corona virus spreads from person to person by cough droplets or sneeze droplets. These droplets fall on people in close proximity and can be directly inhaled or picked up on the hands and transferred when someone touches their face. COVID-19 also spreads through close sustained contact with someone who has the virus. This means people can get infected just by standing within 2 meters of someone for longer than 15 minutes. Chances of infection are even higher if this is happening in a closed space.

These Are Challenging Times For Everyone

H&B understands that this is a very challenging time for everyone. Schools are closing, businesses are instructing their employees to stay home, and even the NBA and NHL are suspending their seasons over fears of spreading the corona virus. Panic and confusion have gripped many.

 If you are a cancer patient, survivor or caretaker, you are likely to have more questions than most people. Cancer treatment suppresses your immune system, which means patients are more susceptible to infections, such as the flu or COVID-19, the disease caused by the Corona virus. Older people are also twice as likely to have serious COVID-19 illness.

 “Patients with hematologic malignancies will have the biggest risk,” said Dr. Shyamali Singhal, a surgical oncologist, and founder of Hope & Beauty.  “Also, patients who are inactive chemotherapy and bone marrow transplant patients are the ones with the most profound immune deficits.”

Learn The Symptoms Of Corona Virus

 The symptoms of corona virus (COVID-19) are:

•  A new continuous cough.

•  High temperature.

• An overall sense of weakness.

The symptoms are similar to other illnesses that are much more common, such as cold and flu.

Anyone experiencing either of these symptoms, however mild, should self-isolate for at least 7 days. At this time, you should not leave your house. The current evidence is that most cases in children and young people appear to be mild. But these symptoms do not necessarily mean you have the illness. You should act like you do, though, in terms of implementing all the preventing measures designed to stop or slow down the spreading of the virus.

What Can You Do To Prevent Spreading Of The Corona Virus?

There is currently no vaccine to prevent corona virus disease (COVID-19). The best way to prevent illness is to avoid being exposed to this virus. You might have already heard of this, by the term “social distancing.”

 According to the CDC and WHO, these are the best ways to avoid infection, and/or prevent it from spreading even further, if by any chance you’re already infected:

• Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. This is one of the best ways to remove viruses from the surface of your hands and prevent the spread of viruses to others. If soap and water are not readily available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol.

• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth. If you picked up the virus, you could infect yourself by allowing the virus to enter your body. 

• Avoid close contact with people who are sick, especially those who are coughing or sneezing.

• If you’re already infected, cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash, or sneeze into your elbow.

• Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces using a regular household cleaning spray or wipe.

• Stay home when you are sick.

Chemotherapy And Corona Virus    

Certain anti-cancer therapies such as chemotherapy or radiotherapy may affect your immune system and make it less efficient to prevent or counter infection. This immune inhibition is usually short-lived and normal immunity recovers after a couple of weeks. Not all cancer treatments will jeopardize the immune system but your cancer doctor will tell you if you are at any risk of immune compromise with your treatment.

Corona virus (COVID-19) is a new strain of a common virus and we are still learning how it works. If an immune-compromised patient is exposed to corona virus they may be at increased risk of becoming infected. The symptoms of corona virus can be very mild in many infected people under the age of 50. However, active cancer treatment may also mean that a patient is more likely to develop a serious complication of infection; for example, pneumonia.

There are realistic estimates, that some 60%, and even up to 80% of people will get infected eventually, whether they take precautions or not. However, this doesn’t mean it doesn’t matter when someone gets it, so we shouldn’t care to pay attention to it. 

If we all do the effort to prolong the time the virus will take to spread through the general population, we are raising individual chances for a good recovery. This is due to the fact that having fewer patients at any time period means that more patients will be able to receive the best possible health care. So, by self-isolating and implementing all precaution measures, we are literally saving lives!