Global impact of COVID-19 on organized CRC screening programs: lessons learned

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Epidemiology
• Oncology

Background:

• The COVID-19 pandemic significantly disrupted healthcare services globally.
• Organized colorectal cancer (CRC) screening programs faced unprecedented challenges in maintaining service delivery.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on CRC screening activity and outcomes.
• To compare screening data from 2020-2021 with pre-pandemic periods (2018-2019).

Main Methods:

• Retrospective data collection using a standardized template from 17 CRC screening programs across 14 countries.
• Analysis of invitation coverage, participation rates, invitation backlogs, and detected CRC cases and stages.

Main Results:

• Invitation coverage decreased by up to 53.7% in 2020, with maximum invitation backlogs of 7.4 months.
• Participation rates among invited individuals remained consistent.
• A decrease in detected CRCs was observed in 2020 for most programs, with some recovery in 2021.
• Half of the countries reported a worse stage distribution of detected CRCs during the pandemic.

Conclusions:

• Organized CRC screening programs experienced reduced activity during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Despite reduced activity, screening participation and overall outcomes showed resilience compared to pre-pandemic levels.
• The pandemic led to a shift in the stage distribution of detected colorectal cancers, warranting further investigation.