Outcomes of Patients with Hematologic Malignancies and COVID-19 Infection: A Report from the ASH Research Collaborative Data Hub

Introduction:

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an illness resulting from severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that emerged in late 2019. Many patients with blood cancer have underlying immune dysfunction, and many are treated with chemotherapies and immunotherapies that are themselves profoundly immunosuppressive. Additionally, patients with blood cancer are often older, may have comorbid illness including hypertension and diabetes, and may be especially susceptible to complications of COVID-19 include hypercoagulability and thrombosis. For patients with hematologic malignancies, overall risk of morbidity and mortality from COVID-19 infection, and how this risk varies as a function of age, disease status, type of malignancy, and cancer therapy, has not yet been well defined.

Methods:

The ASH Research Collaborative COVID-19 Registry for Hematology was developed to study features and outcomes of COVID-19 infection in patients with underlying blood disorders, such as hematologic malignancies. The Registry opened for data collection on April 1, 2020. The Registry is a global effort and is housed on a secure data platform hosted by Prometheus Research, an IQVIA company. The Registry collects data from patients of all ages with a current or history of hematological disease, and either a laboratory-confirmed or presumptive diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Data are made available and regularly updated on the ASH Research Collaborative website to guide the provider and patient communities. Data presented here are limited to malignant hematologic diseases only. Contributors are individual providers or designees submitting data on behalf of providers.

Results:

At the time of this analysis, data from 250 patients with blood cancers from 74 sites around the world had been entered into the Registry. The most commonly represented malignancies were acute leukemia (33%), non-Hodgkin lymphoma (27%), and myeloma or amyloidosis (16%). Patients presented with a myriad of symptoms, most frequently fever (73%), cough (67%), dyspnea (50%), and fatigue (40%). Use of COVID-19-directed therapies such as hydroxychloroquine (N=76) or azithromycin (N=59) was common. Overall mortality was 28%. Patients with a physician-estimated prognosis from the underlying hematologic malignancy of less than 12 months at the time of COVID-19 diagnosis and those with relapsed/refractory disease experienced a higher proportion of moderate/severe COVID-19 disease and death. In some instances, death occurred after a decision was made to forego ICU admission in favor of a palliative approach.

Conclusions:

Taken together, these data support the emerging consensus that patients with hematologic malignancies experience significant morbidity and mortality from COVID-19 infection. However, we see no reason, based on our data, to withhold intensive therapies from patients with underlying hematologic malignancies and favorable prognoses, if aggressive supportive care is consistent with patient preferences. Batch submissions from sites with high incidence of COVID-19 infection are ongoing. The Registry has been expanded to include non-malignant hematologic diseases, and the Registry will continue to accumulate data as a resource for the hematology community.