Delays in cancer screening appointments caused by restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic are still preventing timely cancer diagnoses in Ohio, and could have drastic health effects for years to come, reports Columbus CEO.
Local experts say that despite vigorous efforts to re-engage and reschedule patients for screenings, some might not return in a timely fashion, or at all.
A precipitous drop in mammograms, colonoscopies and other preventive screenings is among the many repercussions of the Covid-19 pandemic, but local imaging experts say the tide is turning. The benefit of having test procedures, they agree, far outweighs the risk.
“It’s incumbent on us to let people know it is safe to be back in our system,” says Dr. David Cohn, chief medical officer at Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center–Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute. “It’s critical that business leaders know that we understand what needs to be done for the safety of our patients, and we encourage them to have their employees get in for testing.”
Locally, radiology experts are encouraged by the rebound in testing that’s occurred over the past few months, but there is lingering concern about the long-term ramifications of missed testing earlier this year.
Read more at Columbus CEO.
