Malignant Neoplasm and ICU outcomes and resource Utilization of COVID-19 patients : A Retrospective analysis

Abstract

Introduction:

The COVID-19 pandemic has placed immense strain on health systems worldwide. This study aims to evaluate outcomes and resource utilization among COVID-19 patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) based on the presence of pre- existing malignant neoplasms.

Methods:

This retrospective study analyzed data from 1,491 COVID-19 patients admitted to ICUs across multiple hospitals from January 2020 to April 2020. Patient demographics, comorbidities including malignant neoplasms, laboratory values, treatment details, and outcomes were collected. Crosstabs and chi-square tests were used to analyze associations between malignant neoplasms and other variables. Continuous variables were compared using ANOVA tests.

Results:

Of the 1,491 patients, 48 (3.2%) had a documented history of malignant neoplasms. Malignant neoplasms were significantly associated with corticosteroid use (p=0.000), chemotherapy in the last 3 months (p=0.000), immunotherapy use (p=0.000), and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory use (p=0.000). No significant associations were found between malignant neoplasms and Glasgow Coma Score, heart rate, respiratory rate, or temperature. Hospital stay was significantly longer in patients with (mean=23.4 days) vs without (mean=20.3 days) malignant neoplasms (p=0.017). Likewise, ICU stay was significantly longer in patients with malignant neoplasms (mean=14.6 days) vs without (mean=12.6 days) (p=0.003).

Conclusion:

The results indicate that COVID-19 patients with pre-existing malignant neoplasms had significantly higher utilization of immunosuppressive medications and longer hospital and ICU stays compared to those without malignant neoplasms. While no significant differences were found in physiological parameters, this may be due to the retrospective study design and lack of data on cancer types and treatments. Further research is needed to better understand outcomes in this high-risk patient population and optimize critical care management of COVID-19 in the context of malignancy.