MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Baptist Healthcare is taking part in a new clinical study involving COVID and cancer patients.
The National Cancer Institute launched the study to help scientists learn more about how the coronavirus impacts cancer patients undergoing treatment.
"I always say if I did catch it I'm going to survive it," said Angela Palmer, Breast Cancer Survivor.
Angela Palmer tries her best to be optimistic about COVID-19. The breast cancer patient went thru chemo and radiation last year. "I do take precautions and I know it's not 100 but it helps, and I limit contact with the outside world," said Palmer.
"Patients who are undergoing active treatment especially with chemotherapy tend to have more serious issues with the COVID virus patients who have recovered whose immune systems have healed up seem to do better," said Dr. Phil Lammers, Baptist Cancer Center.
Lammers said that is what early research has shown but Baptist Healthcare is now taking part in a new clinical study regarding cancer patients and COVID-19.
"The patients who will be enrolled are patients who are newly diagnosed with COVID-19 but have cancer and are undergoing treatment for their cancer," said Lammers.
The study will follow them for 2 years with hopes of answering scientists' questions about how covid-19 impacts cancer as well as cancer's impact on the course of COVID 19. The study plans to find genetic risk factors and markers of serious illness from COVID 19 in people with cancer and create a bank of data and blood samples for future research.
"How the virus effects certain patients with cancer how it effects certain cancer treatments are there certain treatments where patients tend to do better with a COVID outbreak," said Lammers.
Lammers said the study aims to enroll 2,000 people with COVID and cancer nationwide.
As for Palmer, her advice to anyone with an underlying condition, "Stay protected."