924 – COVID-19 Symptoms, Vaccination, and Long COVID Between Cancer Survivors and the US General Population
Jincong Q. Freeman, Victoria Umutoni, Xinyi Li, Olivia Zou, Ted O. Akhiwu
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Background
COVID-19 can have lasting symptoms that may vary in different populations. Cancer survivors face many health challenges and may be more vulnerable to COVID-19. This study examined differences in COVID-19 symptoms, vaccination status, and long COVID between cancer survivors and the general population in the US.
Methods
We conducted a secondary data analysis of the 2022 National Health Interview Survey that used multi-stage probability sampling, accounting for complex survey design. Adults aged ≥18 years with a cancer history were cancer survivors, and the general population included those without a cancer history.
Long COVID was defined as having any symptoms lasting ≥3 months that were absent before having SARS-CoV-2 or COVID-19. Participants were also asked to describe their level of symptom severity and whether they received ≥1 dose of COVID-19 vaccination.
Weighted proportions (95% CIs) were compared using Rao-Scott Chi-squared tests. Weighted logistic regression was used to assess differences in long COVID between cancer survivors and the general population, controlling for sociodemographics and vaccination status. Adjusted odds ratios (AOR, 95% CI) were computed.
Results
The unweighted sample was 8,936 (weighted n=89,331,130, mean age=44 years); of whom, 7.6% (95% CI: 7.0-8.2%) were cancer survivors and 63.4% identified as White, followed by 19.2% as Hispanic, 9.6% as Black, 4.8% as Asian, and 3.0% as Other.
Compared with the general population, significantly higher proportions of cancer survivors experienced severe COVID-19 symptoms (17.9% [95% CI: 15.4-20.4%] vs. 14.3% [95% CI: 13.5-15.2%], p=.019) (Figure) and received a COVID-19 vaccine (88.6% [95% CI: 87.3-89.9%] vs. 78.6% [95% CI: 77.8-79.5%], p<.001).
Overall, 19.7% (95% CI: 18.7-20.7%) experienced long COVID. The weighted percentage of long COVID was significantly higher in cancer survivors than in the general population (23.6% [95% CI: 20.3-27.0%] vs. 19.4% [95% CI: 18.3-20.4%], p=.009).
After covariate adjustment, the odds of long COVID between the two populations were not statistically significant (AOR 1.05, 95% CI: 0.85-1.31, p=.635).
Conclusions
In this US national sample, cancer survivors experienced more severe COVID-19 symptoms than the general population, with no differences in long COVID.
Strategies are needed to address COVID-19 symptom severity in cancer survivors while ensuring equitable COVID-19 care access. Future research should also consider other factors beyond cancer history when assessing long COVID.
Link (Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections) [Abstract Only]
Jincong Q. Freeman, Victoria Umutoni, Xinyi Li, Olivia Zou, Ted O. Akhiwu
[Line breaks added]
Background
COVID-19 can have lasting symptoms that may vary in different populations. Cancer survivors face many health challenges and may be more vulnerable to COVID-19. This study examined differences in COVID-19 symptoms, vaccination status, and long COVID between cancer survivors and the general population in the US.
Methods
We conducted a secondary data analysis of the 2022 National Health Interview Survey that used multi-stage probability sampling, accounting for complex survey design. Adults aged ≥18 years with a cancer history were cancer survivors, and the general population included those without a cancer history.
Long COVID was defined as having any symptoms lasting ≥3 months that were absent before having SARS-CoV-2 or COVID-19. Participants were also asked to describe their level of symptom severity and whether they received ≥1 dose of COVID-19 vaccination.
Weighted proportions (95% CIs) were compared using Rao-Scott Chi-squared tests. Weighted logistic regression was used to assess differences in long COVID between cancer survivors and the general population, controlling for sociodemographics and vaccination status. Adjusted odds ratios (AOR, 95% CI) were computed.
Results
The unweighted sample was 8,936 (weighted n=89,331,130, mean age=44 years); of whom, 7.6% (95% CI: 7.0-8.2%) were cancer survivors and 63.4% identified as White, followed by 19.2% as Hispanic, 9.6% as Black, 4.8% as Asian, and 3.0% as Other.
Compared with the general population, significantly higher proportions of cancer survivors experienced severe COVID-19 symptoms (17.9% [95% CI: 15.4-20.4%] vs. 14.3% [95% CI: 13.5-15.2%], p=.019) (Figure) and received a COVID-19 vaccine (88.6% [95% CI: 87.3-89.9%] vs. 78.6% [95% CI: 77.8-79.5%], p<.001).
Overall, 19.7% (95% CI: 18.7-20.7%) experienced long COVID. The weighted percentage of long COVID was significantly higher in cancer survivors than in the general population (23.6% [95% CI: 20.3-27.0%] vs. 19.4% [95% CI: 18.3-20.4%], p=.009).
After covariate adjustment, the odds of long COVID between the two populations were not statistically significant (AOR 1.05, 95% CI: 0.85-1.31, p=.635).
Conclusions
In this US national sample, cancer survivors experienced more severe COVID-19 symptoms than the general population, with no differences in long COVID.
Strategies are needed to address COVID-19 symptom severity in cancer survivors while ensuring equitable COVID-19 care access. Future research should also consider other factors beyond cancer history when assessing long COVID.
Link (Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections) [Abstract Only]
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