A first-of-its-kind study examining the assumption that cancer patients are an at-risk group for COVID-19 finds that these patients do not get infected any more than the general population and do not suffer from more severe disease symptoms. In fact, based on their findings, the researchers hypothesize that cancer treatments may affect the patients’ response to COVID19-induced "cytokine storm."

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From the moment the COVID-19 pandemic broke out, medical teams around the world operated under the assumption that cancer patients were an at-risk group in terms of contracting the virus. Defining cancer patients as an at-risk group had far-reaching implications for their treatment - this without any prior scientific basis. Patients were afraid to seek treatment for fear of contracting the coronavirus in hospitals, and in some countries, guidelines were issued for postponing oncology treatments in certain situations.

A new study conducted by researchers at Rambam Medical Center and the Technion reveals surprising findings, namely that cancer patients may not be associated with the broad range of at-risk groups of people suffering from morbidities. The research was led by Professor Yuval Shaked, head of the Rappaport - Technion Integrated Cancer Center (R-TICC) and Professor Irit Ben Aharon, director of the Division of Oncology at Rambam and principal investigator at the R-TICC, in collaboration with Dr. Tal Goshen-Lago, head of the Translational Research Division of Oncology at Rambam. The findings were published in Cancers, in a special edition dealing with the impact of the coronavirus on cancer patients.