The COVID-19 pandemic has substantially disrupted delivery of healthcare services, most particularly cancer control and care services. Clinical interruptions have delayed care for existing patients with cancer as well identification of new cancers via screening. These obstacles have exacerbated anxiety and fear already present among patients with cancer. The aim of the COVID-19 and Cancer Program (previously, the McGill Task Force on the Impact of COVID-19 on Cancer Control and Care) is to unite investigative efforts across the Department of Oncology in order to generate research-supported contingency plans to reduce risk of adverse outcomes among individuals with cancer in the McGill cancer care network in the event of future pandemic-related changes or public health emergencies. Several Division of Cancer Epidemiology members - academicians and students - are involved as part of the core group of the COVID-19 and Cancer Program.
Program Director
Wilson Miller
Professor
Gerald Bronfman Department of Oncology
Division of Cancer Epidemiology Members in Program Core Group
Current Members
Past Members
Yi-Chuan Yu (PhD Epidemiology)
Samantha Morais (postdoctoral research fellow)
Eliya Farah (Master of Science in Public Health student)
Rami Ali (Master of Science in Public Health student)
Completed Projects
- Malagón T, Yong JHE, Tope P, Miller WH, Jr., Franco EL. Predicted long-term impact of COVID-19 pandemic-related care delays on cancer mortality in Canada. Int J Cancer. 2022; 150(8):1244-54. DOI:10.1002/ijc.33884. [PubMed link]
- Farah E, Ali R, Tope P, El-Zein M, Franco EL, McGill Task Force On COVID-19 and Cancer. A Review of Canadian Cancer-Related Clinical Practice Guidelines and Resources during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Curr Oncol. 2021; 28(2):1020-33. DOI:10.3390/curroncol28020100. [PubMed link]
- Tope P, Farah E, Ali R, El-Zein M, Miller WH, Franco EL. The impact of lag time to cancer diagnosis and treatment on clinical outcomes prior to the COVID-19 pandemic: a scoping review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses. 2023; 12:e81354. DOI: 10.7554/eLife.81354. [medRxiv posting available] [PubMed link]
- El-Zein M, Ali R, Farah E, Botting-Provost S, Franco EL. Pan-Canadian survey on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on cervical cancer screening and management. 2023;12:e83764. DOI:10.7554/eLife.83764. [medRxiv posting available] [PubMed link]
- Malagón T, Morais S, Tope P, El-Zein M, Franco EL. Site-Specific Cancer Incidence by Race and Immigration Status in Canada 2006–2015: A Population-Based Data Linkage Study. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2023; 32(7): 906–918. DOI: 10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-22-1191. [medRxiv posting available] [PubMed link]
- Churipuy M, Noorani R, Mullen CJ, El-Zein M, Barr RD, Franco EL, Malagón T. Systematic review and thematic analysis of the psychosocial and financial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic in children with cancer and their families. Preparing manuscript for submission.
Ongoing Projects
- Use of Quebec administrative health data to assess health system impacts of the pandemic on cancer care pathways. Research will be completed for the following cancer sites:
- Cervical cancer (led by Emma Wallens)
- Childhood cancers (led by Callum Mullen)
- Ovarian cancer (led by Thilor Ndiaye)
- Breast and lung cancer – seeking individuals to lead the research
- Collaboration with Australian members of the COVID-19 and Cancer Global Modelling Consortium to perform in-depth comparative modeling of the pandemic’s impact on colorectal cancer screening, diagnosis, and treatment using data from ICES (Ontario)