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Recommendations for the surgical management of gynecological cancers during the COVID-19 pandemic - FRANCOGYN group for the CNGOF.

Akladios C, Azais H, Ballester M, Bendifallah S, Bolze PA, Bourdel N, Bricou A, Canlorbe G et al.

Journal of gynecology obstetrics and human reproduction, 2020

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, specific recommendations are required for the management of patients with gynecologic cancer.

MATERIALS AND METHOD: The FRANCOGYN group of the National College of French Gynecologists and Obstetricians (CNGOF) convened to develop recommendations based on the consensus conference model.

RESULTS: If a patient with a gynecologic cancer presents with COVID-19, surgical management should be postponed for at least 15 days. For cervical cancer, radiotherapy and concomitant radiochemotherapy could replace surgery as first-line treatment and the value of lymph node staging should be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. For advanced ovarian cancers, neoadjuvant chemotherapy should be preferred over primary cytoreduction surgery. It is legitimate not to perform hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy during the COVID-19 pandemic. For patients who are scheduled to undergo interval surgery, chemotherapy can be continued and surgery performed after 6 cycles. For patients with early stage endometrial cancer of low and intermediate preoperative ESMO risk, hysterectomy with bilateral adnexectomy combined with a sentinel lymph node procedure is recommended. Surgery can be postponed for 1-2 months in low-risk endometrial cancers (FIGO Ia stage on MRI and grade 1-2 endometrioid cancer on endometrial biopsy). For patients of high ESMO risk, the MSKCC algorithm (combining PET-CT and sentinel lymph node biopsy) should be applied to avoid pelvic…

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