The number of COVID patients being treated at The University of Kansas Health System has dropped again today. 28 with the active virus are being treated, down from 31 yesterday. Eight patients are in the ICU, down from nine yesterday. Seven are on ventilators, the same as yesterday. 34 other patients are still hospitalized because of COVID but are out of the acute infection phase, up from 33 yesterday. That’s a total of 62 patients, down from 64 yesterday. HaysMed has 15 total patients.
Doctors feel the biggest reason for the recent drop in numbers is mask mandates, especially in schools. But they worry that not enough people are vaccinated, and the lower numbers may cause an ease in mask mandates, leading to another spike.
On today’s Morning Medical Update, cancer screenings took a nosedive in the last year despite easing of COVID restrictions. Roy Jensen, MD, vice chancellor and director of The University of Kansas Cancer Center, and Ronald Chen, MD, chair of Radiation Oncology, joined to look at the long term impact.
Before getting to today’s topic, doctors discussed a health alert just in from the CDC advising all women to get a COVID vaccine as soon as possible, before or during pregnancy. That includes women already pregnant, women trying to get pregnant and women who might want to get pregnant, as well as recently pregnant women, including those lactating. The advisory reported that “the benefits of vaccination outweigh known or potential risks.” Those risks include serious illness, deaths, and adverse pregnancy outcomes such as preterm birth and stillbirth. That echoes what the health system’s own OBGYN experts, as well as their national organizations, have been advising for months.
Dr. Chen discussed his research showing ten million cancer screenings in the U.S. have been missed since the pandemic began. He says that’s a major problem because even with numbers rising again, we’re not seeing the catch up for those missed screenings. That means when cancers are diagnosed, they are much more advanced and less likely to be cured. He says the most common screenings are for breast, colon, and prostate cancer. But he says lung cancer can grow rapidly and a missed screening for six months or a year can literally mean the difference between life and death. He advised men 50 and older to get screened yearly for prostate cancer, and those 45 years and older with a family history of the cancer. He discussed the big news that proton therapy is coming to the Cancer Center soon, one of only 38 facilities in the nation to offer this advanced form of radiation. He explained how it can target the tumor and reduce side effects. People in the Midwest have had to travel hundreds of miles for this treatment in the past.
Dr. Jensen’s biggest concern about the low level of vaccination rates is for cancer patients with compromised immune systems. The fewer people in the community who have the virus, the less likely it is these patients will get infected. But he says their immune systems are not normal and they have a “very tough, tough time if they get a case of COVID.” He says it’s entirely preventable and we need to do everything we can to protect them. He also noted that 85 percent of lung cancer is tobacco or vaping related and is not inherited. As we observe the 50th anniversary of cancer research, he said, “It’s one of the most exciting times ever to be a cancer clinician or cancer researcher because we have so many tools available and we’re making progress against a really broad number of fronts, including how to use the immune system to fight cancer.” He also revealed that the cancer center recently submitted its exhaustive application to the National Cancer Institute to become a Comprehensive Cancer Center. It is a gold standard of excellence, awarded only to cancer centers with the deepest and broadest knowledge of cancer. The KU Cancer Center will find out next spring after a site visit if they have achieved this status.
Dana Hawkinson, MD, medical director of Infection Prevention and Control at The University of Kansas Health System, explained what it means when he talks about patients in the hospital who are in the recovery period. Patients who are ten days after their positive test or first sign of symptoms are no longer considered shedding the virus, but may still be feeling the effects from COVID and still need treatment. He says the latest data shows vaccination helps reduce long haul syndrome in COVID patients. Of those who are unvaccinated, he adds, “People who otherwise should not be in the hospital are going to the hospital because of this infection.” He also urges everyone to think ahead to the coming holiday and encourage unvaccinated family members and friends to get vaccinated so you can safely meet in small groups.
Steve Stites, MD, chief medical officer at The University of Kansas Health System, noted data from all of the vaccines shows you still have a really good response six to eight months out. He says he would bet on another wave of the virus now that numbers are down, people start going indoors because of the cooler weather and mask requirements ease. He addressed the question, “If masks work, why is vaccination being forced on hospital employees? Wouldn’t patients have faith that masks work so that they would not need to be afraid of unvaccinated employees?” He said, “You want to eliminate every risk. Masks work when they’re on, but sometimes people take their masks off and you can still spread it.” He adds, “When our employees leave here, they may not wear the mask all the time. And that’s where they tend to get COVID. And then they can’t come to work, and we can’t take care of as many patients. We want our staff to get vaccinated because we realize they live in the community and they go home and they do all the normal things we all do, and everybody’s not always great about wearing a mask when they’re not in the hospital. We need to keep our staff safe so we’re ready to take care of you. And if we can’t be ready to take care of you, then we’re not doing the right thing.”
Friday, October 1 at 8:00 a.m. is the next Morning Medical Update. We will answer media questions and those from the community we didn’t have time for earlier this week.
NOTE: Journalists should rejoin the Morning Medical Update at 8am as doctors are growing too busy again for individual interview requests. Please bring questions or send to medicalnewsnetwork@kumc.edu until further notice. Thanks for all you do and helping to keep the community safe with your reporting.
ATTENTION: media procedure for calling in:
The meeting is available by Zoom, both video and by phone. To join the Zoom Meeting by video, click https://kumc-ois.zoom.us/j/7828978628
Telephone dial-in Participants: For those without Zoom, call 1-312-626-6799, meeting ID: 782 897 8628.
The feed is also available via TVU grid. The TVU source is UoK_Health and is being made available to all.
Feel free to send questions in advance to medicalnewsnetwork@kumc.edu.