SARS-CoV-2 Infection in the Pediatric Oncology Population: The Definitive Comprehensive Report of the Infectious Diseases Working Group of AIEOP

• Published in: The Journal of infectious diseases Vol. 229; no. 4; pp. 1050 - 1058
• Main Authors: Zama, Daniele, Zanaroli, Andrea, Corbelli, Agnese, Lo Vecchio, Andrea, Del Bene, Margherita, Colombini, Antonella, Compagno, Francesca, Barone, Angelica, Fontanili, Ilaria, Rosaria D’Amico, Maria, Papa, Maria Rosaria, Petris, Maria Grazia, Calore, Elisabetta, Montalto, Shana, Meneghello, Linda, Brescia, Letizia, Mura, Rosamaria, La Spina, Milena, Muggeo, Paola, Rinieri, Simona, Meazza, Cristina, Perruccio, Katia, Cellini, Monica, Spadea, Manuela, Mercolini, Federico, Petroni, Valeria, De Santis, Raffaella, Soncini, Elena, Provenzi, Massimo, Giurici, Nagua, Ziino, Ottavio, Tridello, Gloria, Cesaro, Simone
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: US Oxford University Press 12-04-2024
• Subjects: Asymptomatic; Chemotherapy; Hematology; Hematopoietic stem cells; Infections; Infectious diseases; Neutropenia; Oncology; Pandemics; Patients; Pediatrics; Risk factors; Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; Stem cell transplantation; hematopoietic stem cell transplantation; SARS-CoV-2; pediatric oncology; pediatric hematology; chemotherapy
• ISSN: 0022-1899; 1537-6613
• DOI: 10.1093/infdis/jiad496

Abstract
Objective
The objective of this study was to assess the clinical impact and outcome of the SARS-CoV-2 infection on children with cancer or those who received a hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.
Methods
AIEOP (Italian Association of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology) performed a nationwide multicenter observational cohort study, including consecutive patients between April 2020 and November 2022.
Results
Twenty-five Italian centers participated and 455 patients were enrolled. We reported a significant increasing trend of symptomatic cases over the years, while the number of nonmild infections remained stable. Early infection after oncologic diagnosis (<60 days) and severe neutropenia were identified as independent risk factors for developing moderate, severe, or critical infections. The percentage of patients who were asymptomatic and mildly symptomatic and who stopped chemotherapy reduced over the years of the pandemic. Nine patients died, but no death was attributed to SARS-CoV-2 infection.
Conclusions
SARS-CoV-2 infection presented a self-limiting benign course in the Italian pediatric oncohematology population during the pandemic, and its main consequence has been the discontinuation of cancer-directed therapies. The rate of patients who were asymptomatic and stopped chemotherapy reduced over the years, suggesting that the continuation of chemotherapy is a feasible option.
This report from the Italian Association of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology found that SARS-CoV-2 infections in pediatric patients with cancer and recipients of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in Italy during the pandemic were generally mild, leading to treatment interruptions but not directly causing any deaths.