Abstract
Objective: Coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) causes fear and anxiety due to its high mortality rates and high spreading
rate. The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of the level of fear of COVID-19 disease on the frequency of hospital admissions of
cancer patients. Material and Methods: Fear of Coronavirus-19 Scale questionnaire was used to evaluate the fear of COVID-19 in cancer
patients who were followed up and treated at Gaziantep University Department of Medical Oncology during September 1-30. The changes
made by the patients in the frequency of hospital admissions were questioned. Results: It was observed that 36 of 107 patients included in
the study changed the frequency of hospital admissions. However, no statistical relationship was found between the COVID-19 fear level and
the change in the frequency of hospital admissions. When the factors affecting the frequency of hospital admissions were evaluated, it was
observed that there was less change in the frequency of admission to hospital in patients without symptoms, with a history of surgery, receiving
parenteral therapy, and with advanced disease. Conclusion: During the COVID-19 pandemic, oral treatment and being a patient under follow-
up, having surgery, being a patient without symptoms negatively affected hospital admissions. Future studies will determine how the
survival of these patients will be affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Keywords:
COVID-19, fear, cancer patient, frequency of hospital admission
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