Patients with cancer and cardiovascular disease may have a potentially higher risk of contracting COVID-19 and a higher likelihood of experiencing adverse outcomes from the disease, according to a paper published March 20 in JACC: CardioOncology.

Sarju Ganatra, MD, et al., reviewed preliminary data from China to assess the effects of COVID-19 in patients with pre-existing cancer and cardiovascular disease.

The authors looked at COVID-19 outcomes in cancer and cardiovascular disease patients; acute cardiovascular injury and mechanism of injury; and management of cancer and cardiovascular disease patients with COVID-19, as well as those without COVID-19 in high-transmission areas; and future directions for management.

According to reports from China, about 1% of patients with confirmed COVID-19 had cancer, and 40% of COVID-19 patients who were hospitalized with pneumonia had pre-existing cardiovascular disease.

Those with a history of cancer were more likely to develop severe disease, either requiring admission to an intensive care unit or resulting in death, compared to those without a cancer history (39% vs. 8%).

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