Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41580537›Full record

ArticleAnnals of surgical oncology2026

Breast Cancer Surgery Wait Times and COVID-19: A Canadian Population-Based Analysis.

Gary Ko, Qing Li, Ning Liu, Eitan Amir, Andrea M Covelli, Antoine Eskander, Vivianne Freitas, C Anne Koch, Jenine Ramruthan, Emma Reel and 3 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Annals of surgical oncology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

13 authors.

Gary KoDivision of General Surgery, Department of Surgery, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Qing LiICES, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Ning LiuICES, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Eitan AmirDivision of Medical Oncology and Hematology, Department of Medicine, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Andrea M CovelliDivision of General Surgery, Department of Surgery, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Antoine EskanderICES, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Vivianne FreitasJoint Department of Medical Imaging, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
C Anne KochRadiation Medicine Program, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Jenine RamruthanDivision of General Surgery, Department of Surgery, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Emma ReelDivision of General Surgery, Department of Surgery, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Amanda RobertsDivision of General Surgery, Department of Surgery, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Toni ZhongDivision of General Surgery, Department of Surgery, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Tulin D CilDivision of General Surgery, Department of Surgery, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada. Tulin.Cil@uhn.ca.

Funding

CIHR 179884
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundDuring the COVID-19 pandemic, operating room restrictions led to triaging of breast cancer (BC) surgery. This study assessed the impact of the pandemic on wait times for BC surgery at a population level.

methodsPatients diagnosed with BC between January 2018 and December 2021 in Ontario, Canada, were categorized as pre-pandemic (January 1, 2018, to March 14, 2020), immediate (March 15, 2020, to June 13, 2020), and peri-pandemic (June 14, 2020, to December 31, 2021). Time-to-event analysis evaluated the time to first BC surgery, with subgroup analyses for patients receiving neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) and neoadjuvant endocrine therapy (NET).

resultsAmong 37,520 patients with newly diagnosed BC, the probability of undergoing surgery each month from their diagnosis date was significantly lower during the immediate and peri-pandemic period than during the pre-pandemic period (log-rank p < 0.01). However, the use of NAC and NET increased during the immediate pandemic compared with the pre-pandemic (NAC: 24.3% vs. 14.4%; NET 12.4% vs. 6.6%; p < 0.01). Among patients who had surgery as first treatment, the median wait time was shortest during the immediate pandemic (1.0 mo) compared with the pre- and peri-pandemic periods (1.2 mo, p < 0.01).

conclusionThis population-based study found longer diagnosis-to-surgery times during the immediate pandemic, with increased use of neoadjuvant therapy. However, surgical wait times (e.g. post NAC) were shorter in the immediate pandemic, highlighting the triaging of BC care during this unprecedented event.

Indexed as

Breast NeoplasmsCOVID-19MastectomyTime-to-TreatmentWaiting ListsAdultAgedFemaleHumansMiddle AgedNeoadjuvant TherapyOntarioPandemicsSARS-CoV-2Treatment DelayBreast cancerCOVID-19NACNETOntarioPandemicSurgeryWait times

Identifiers

PMID41580537
PMCPMC13083350

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.