Learning from and Leveraging Multi-Level Changes in Responses to the COVID 19 Pandemic to Facilitate Breast Cancer Prevention Efforts

Deborah J. Bowen, Kelly E. Rentscher, Amy Wu, Gwen Darien, Helen Ghirmai Haile, Jeanne Mandelblatt and Marion Kavanaugh-Lynch
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Deborah J. Bowen: Department of Bioethics and Humanties, University of Washington School of Medicine, 1959 NE Pacific St., P.O. Box 357120, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
Kelly E. Rentscher: Cousins Center for Psychoneuroimmunology, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, University of California, 300 Medical Plaza, Suite 3156, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
Amy Wu: California Breast Cancer Research Program, University of California Office of the President, 1111 Franklin Street Oakland, Oakland, CA 94607, USA
Gwen Darien: National Patient Advocate Foundation, 1100 H Street, NW, Suite 710, Washington, DC 20005, USA
Helen Ghirmai Haile: Department of Bioethics and Humanties, University of Washington School of Medicine, 1959 NE Pacific St., P.O. Box 357120, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
Jeanne Mandelblatt: Department of Oncology, Cancer Prevention and Control Program Georgetown-Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center and Department of Medicine, Georgetown University Medical Center, 3300 Whitehaven Street NW, Washington, DC 20007, USA
Marion Kavanaugh-Lynch: California Breast Cancer Research Program, University of California Office of the President, 1111 Franklin Street Oakland, Oakland, CA 94607, USA

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 13, 1-12

Abstract: The coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) has had multilevel effects on non-COVID-19 health and health care, including deferral of routine cancer prevention and screening and delays in surgical and other procedures. Health and health care use has also been affected by pandemic-related loss of employer-based health insurance, food and housing disruptions, and heightened stress, sleep disruptions and social isolation. These disruptions are projected to contribute to excess non-COVID-19 deaths over the coming decades. At the same time municipalities, health systems and individuals are making changes in response to the pandemic, including modifications in the environmental to promote health, implementation of telehealth platforms, and shifts towards greater self-care and using remote platforms to maintain social connections. We used a multi-level biopsychosocial model to examine the available literature on the relationship between COVID-19-related changes and breast cancer prevention to identify current gaps in knowledge and identify potential opportunities for future research. We found that COVID-19 has impacted several aspects of social and economic life, through a variety of mechanisms, including unemployment, changes in health care delivery, changes in eating and activity, and changes in mental health. Some of these changes should be reduced, while others should be explored and enhanced.

Keywords: COVID-19; breast cancer; review paper; cancer prevention (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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