Comparative examination of patients with suspect and diagnosis of prostate cancer before and during the COVID-19 pandemic

Aims: We aimed to determine the clinical stage (CS) alteration in recently diagnosed prostate cancer(PCa) patients with a delay in outpatient diagnostic evalutions and procedures due to COVID-19. Methods: We reviewed patients underwent 12 quadrant biopsies in our clinic between January 2018 and April 2022 , 86 pre-pandemic (Group-1) and 86 pandemic. The results of patients with PCa, during pandemic (Group-2) were evaluated cross-sectionally. Serum PSA levels, prostate volume, biopsy parameters, gleason score and groups, CS, presence of high and low volume metastatic disease, clinical risk assessments were compared in both groups. Results: In Group-1, 440 patients were included and PCa was reported in the pathology results of 86 patients (19.54% of biopsies performed). Group-2 encompassed 287 patients in which we identified 86 patients with PCa. We identified PCa in 29.96% of biopsies performed in the Group-2. Encountering a malignant prostate biopsy was found to be significantly higher in the Group-1(p=0.001). The average clinical stage was T2b in Group-1, and T2c in Group-2 which was found statistically significant (p=0.019). The number of cancer-positive cores was 4 in Group-1 and 5 in Group-2(p = 0.007). The average values ??of tumor percentages in cancerous cores were determined as 47% in Group-1 and 57% in Group-2(p = 0.024). The probability of a patient with a malignant biopsy being in the local stage is higher in Group-1(p = 0,043). Conclusion: Serum PSA levels, CS, number of cancer-positive cores and average tumor percentages in cancerous cores during the pandemic are significantly higher compared to the Group-1. Postponing prostate biopsy in suspected PCa; may negatively affect disease-related survival or overall survival.