Climate
· Decreased air pollution reported during the global shutdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic was "a brief respite" from the impacts of climate change, but in light of the global recession, governments and individuals will likely prioritize the economy and their health rather than the environment (decreased use of public transportation, more fossil fuel consumption, increased use of single use plastics), suggesting these behaviors will contribute to even worse air quality moving forward.
Epidemiology
· Italian sports medicine physicians conducted a cohort study of 30 male professional soccer players, all of whom were negative for acute SARS-CoV-2 infection via RT-PCR and reported histories of either no or mild symptoms of COVID-19, however 18 (60%) were positive for SARS-CoV-2 IgG and demonstrated a statistically significant decrease in spirometry parameters (p<0.05). Because no other relevant differences in cardiopulmonary function testing were found, the authors suggest extensive cardiovascular and hematologic screening for male professional athletes who test positive for SARS-CoV-2 IgG is of limited utility.
Transmission & Prevention
· A retrospective cohort study of 2888 residents in a Guangzhou community with RT-PCR and genome sequencing of samples collected from the environment and residents found that working in waste management (RR=13, 95% CI: 2.3-180), failing to change into clean shoes at home (RR=7.4, 95% CIexact: 1.8-34), and coming home and cleaning shoes daily (RR=6.3, 95% CIexact: 1.4-30) were significantly associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection.
Adjusting Practice During COVID-19
· An international consortium of multidisciplinary cancer care experts from the European Society for Medical Oncology present a set of statements encompassing 28 committee-approved guidelines for cancer care best practices during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic that encompass 10 categories (patient management and follow-up, infection prevention, use of specific therapies [GC-SF, thromboembolism prophylaxis, targeted TKI, chemotherapy, radiation], immunotherapy utilization, COVID-19 testing, and clinical trial activity) and suggest that their guidelines offer the best strategy for providing high quality care to cancer patients during the COVID-19 pandemic while minimizing potential harm.
Click here to download full report