Health Headlines - 8-18-20

In today's health headlines we talk about how cancer diagnosis is down during COVID-19, but it is not because cancer is going away.

A mother from Texas passed on COVID-19 to her unborn child.

CANCER DIAGNOSES ARE DOWN DURINGTHE PANDEMIC AND THAT HAS HEALTHEXPERTS VERYCONCERNED.THEY BELIEVE THERE ARE JUST ASMANY CASES OUT THERE BUT THEY'RENOT BEINGCAUGHT EARLY.THAT MAY RESULT IN MORE DEATHSIN THE COMING YEARS.SARAH DALLOF HAS THE STORY.CHEALCI EDDINS IS IN THE FIGHTHER LIFE.

BATTLING BREAST CANCERDURING THE PANDEMIC.CHEALCI EDDINS, BREAST CANCERPATIENT"I M NOT GOING LET CANCER BEATME."BUT HEATH EXPERTS WORRY FOREVERY CASE LIKE CHEALCI'S...MANY OTHERS ARE GOINGUNDETECTED...UNDIAGNOSED... OR UNTREATED AS ARESULT OF COVID-19.

... AND WILLRESULT IN THOUSANDS OFEXCESS DEATHS.DR. NED SHARPLESS, DIRECTOR,NATIONAL CANCER INSTITUTE"WE ARE LOOKING AT THEPOSSIBILITY FOR THE FIRST TIMEIN DECADES WE DON'T SEE CANCERMORTALITYDECLINE ON A YEAR TO YEARBASIS."EARLIER THIS SUMMER... HEAD OFTHE NATIONAL CANCER INSTITUTEDR. NED SHARPLESS WROTE INMEDICAL JOURNAL MAGAZINE SCIENCE... THERE COULD BE 10-THOUSANDADDITIONAL DEATHS FROM BREASTANDCOLORECTAL CANCER ALONE OVER THENEXT DECADE.HE NOW BELIEVES THAT ESTIMATE ISCONSERVATIVE.DR. NED SHARPLESS/ DIRECTOR,NATIONAL CANCER INSTITUTE"THAT COLONOSCOPIES ANDMAMMOGRAPHY HAVE DECLINED TO ANEVEN GREATER DEGREE THAN WEPREDICTED AT THE TIME."A RECENT STUDY FROM THE PREVENTCANCER FOUNDATION FOUND MORETHAN A THIRD OF AMERICANS HAVEMISSED CANCER SCREENINGS DUE TOCOVID-19 FEARS.OTHERS HAVE DELAYED THEEVALUATION OF SYMPTOMS FORSIMILAR REASONSDR. NED SHARPLESS, DIRECTOR,NATIONAL CANCER INSTITUTE"IN GENERAL WE THINK THAT CANCERIS A BIGGER THREAT THAN EXPOSURETO CORONAVIRUS/THE NATIONAL CANCER INSTITUTE ISENCOURAGING PATIENTS TOCOMMUNICATE WITH THEIR DOCTORSAS ITHELPS TREATMENT CENTERS GET BACKUP TO SPEED... AND PUSHES FORCONTINUED CLINICAL TRIALS ANDRESEARCH.ALL CRITICAL PIECES TO COMBATTHE ENORMOUS IMPACT CORONAVIRUSIS HAVING ON CANCER CARE.A MOTHER FROM TEXAS IS OPENINGUP ABOUT PASSING COVID-19 TO HERNEWBORN BABY.THE CASE IS ONE OF THE FEWDOCUMENTED AROUND THE WORLD OFCOVID-19 TRANSMISSION BETWEEN APREGNANT WOMAN AND HER UNBORNCHILD.WENDY FIGUEROA TESTED POSITIVEFOR COVID RIGHT BEFORE GIVINGBIRTH.WITHIN 24 HOURS, BABY ALEXATESTED POSITIVE AS WELL.NOW DOCTORS SAY THIS MIGHT BETHE FIRST U-S CASE OF COVIDTRANSMISSIONFROM MOTHER TO UNBORN BABY.DOCTOR WILMER MORENO SAYSTRANSMISSION FROM MOTHER TOFETUS ISPOSSIBLE BUT RARE.NEW TESTING PROTOCOLS WILL HELPTRACK THE TRENDS BUT THECHALLENGE,ACCORDING TO DOCTOR MORENO, ISTREATMENT."TYPICALLY WOMEN SOMETIMES AREEXCLUDED FROM THESE TRIALSBECAUSE PEOPLE AREAFRAID OF RISKS TO THE BABY, SOAT THIS MOMENT, ALL OF THEINSTITUTIONS DOING RESEARCH AREVERYAWARE THAT THEY NEED TO INCLUDEWOMEN AND PREGNANT WOMEN INTHESE STUDIES."THE C-D-C SAYS MORE THAN THREETHOUSAND PREGNANT WOMEN IN THECOUNTRY HAVEBEEN HOSPITALIZED BECAUSE OFCOVID-19.ACCORDING TO DOCTORS - MOSTPREGNANT WOMEN MAKE A FULLRECOVERY.