Cancer treatments do not interfere with the maintenance or loss of immunity generated by coronavirus infection in lung cancer patients who, in addition, achieve immunity similar to that of the general population after infection by this virus.
Blood samples from patients with covid in a hospital in San Salvador (EL Salvador). EFE/Rodrigo Sura
Lung cancer: treatments do not interfere with immunity due to covid
This is reflected in the SOLID study of the Spanish Lung Cancer Group (GECP) carried out in 50 hospital centers in Spain during the first wave of the pandemic on 1,500 patients with this tumor and which focuses on the immunity acquired after SARS-CoV-2 infection.
“There were no data on how immunological memory acted in cancer patients, so we decided to launch this study,” he explains. Mariano Provencio, president of the GECP and principal investigator, it’s a statement.
The study, published in the revista “Translational Lung Cancer Research”, consisted of randomly performing antibody determinations on 1,500 patients with lung cancer, who are especially vulnerable to covid and one of the pathologies with the greatest social impact.
Of these 1,500 patients, 8.5% were positive. And of those, 75% were on active cancer treatment and about half had experienced symptomatic illness with suspected coronavirus infection.
The study followed up the positive cases, carrying out new antibody determinations at four months.
In this second determination, no antibodies were detected in 30.8% of the patients.
“There are few data on the duration of protection in the general population, however it is generally accepted that antibodies break down rapidly three months after the onset of symptoms. In our study, 30.8% of the positive patients had lost their antibodies after some time”, adds Dr. Provencio, also head of the Oncology Service at the Puerta de Hierro Hospital in Madrid.
This loss of antibodies is not, however, related to any cancer treatment received. “We even checked chemotherapy against immunotherapy, which could be suspected of interfering with acquired immunity,” the specialist points out.
The more severity, the more immunity
According to the SOLID study, the severity of the infection, the need for hospitalization and the presence of symptoms at the time of diagnosis are associated with a longer duration of immunity in general and in those affected by lung cancer.
“We found a statistically significant association between the severity of the infection, the presence of symptoms, fever and nasal congestion with the persistence of immunity in the second determination months later,” says the oncologist.
In 47% of patients, an increase in antibodies was observed over time. In this case, the researchers GECP they have not found causes behind this increase.
How was the evolution in patients with covid
This study has also analyzed the evolution of patients with lung cancer who contracted covid.
“The mortality rate in our study is significantly different from that of others published. Only one of the covid patients died. Despite the fact that more than 30% required hospitalization for the virus, and that 75% were in active treatment against cancer, most of them with several lines of treatment, they managed to survive”, affirms the president of this independent cooperative group for research of lung cancer.
“Our results allow us to hope for the duration of protection against the virus, as well as to carry out the same therapeutic efforts as for the general population, since the evolution of our patients does not seem to differ much,” he points out.
“Therefore – he adds – in the case of a serious infection, these patients should receive the same care, including admission to intensive care.”
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