Data_Sheet_1_Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Cancer Researchers in 2020: A Qualitative Study of Events to Inform Mitigation Strategies.DOCX

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has had an unprecedented impact on global health systems and economies. With ongoing and future challenges posed to the field due to the pandemic, re-examining research priorities has emerged as a concern. As part of a wider project aiming to examine research priorities, here we aimed to qualitatively examine the documented impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on cancer researchers.
Materials and Methods: We conducted a literature review with the aim of identifying non-peer-reviewed journalistic sources and institutional blog posts which qualitatively documented the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on cancer researchers. We searched on 12th January 2021 using the LexisNexis database and Google, using terms and filters to identify English-language media reports and blogs, containing references to both COVID-19 and cancer research. The targeted search returned 751 results, of which 215 articles met the inclusion criteria. These 215 articles were subjected to a conventional qualitative content analysis, to document the impacts of the pandemic on the field of cancer research.
Results: Our analysis yielded a high plurality of qualitatively documented impacts, from which seven categories of direct impacts emerged: (1) COVID measures halting cancer research activity entirely; (2) COVID measures limiting cancer research activity; (3) forced adaptation of research protocols; (4) impacts on cancer diagnosis, cases, and services; (5) availability of resources for cancer research; (6) disruption to the private sector; and (7) disruption to supply chains. Three categories of consequences from these impacts also emerged: (1) potential changes to future research practice; (2) delays to the progression of the field; and (3) potential new areas of research interest.
Discussion: The COVID-19 pandemic had extensive practical and economic effects on the field of cancer research in 2020 that were highly plural in nature. Appraisal of cancer research strategies in a post-COVID world should acknowledge the potential for substantial limitations (such as on financial resources, limited access to patients for research, decreased patient access to cancer care, staffing issues, administrative delays, or supply chain issues), exacerbated cancer disparities, advances in digital health, and new areas of research related to the intersection of cancer and COVID-19.

引言：新型冠状病毒肺炎（COVID-19）大流行对全球医疗卫生系统与经济均造成了前所未有的冲击。此次大流行给相关领域带来了持续及未来的挑战，重新审视研究优先级已成为学界关注的议题。本研究作为一项旨在梳理研究优先级的大型项目的组成部分，旨在开展质性分析，探究新冠大流行对癌症研究者产生的已被记录的影响。
材料与方法：本研究开展一项文献综述，旨在筛选出对新冠大流行给癌症研究者带来的影响进行质性记录的非同行评议新闻来源与机构博客文章。我们于2021年1月12日使用律商联讯（LexisNexis）数据库与谷歌搜索引擎进行检索，通过检索词与筛选条件，定位同时提及COVID-19与癌症研究的英文媒体报道及博客文章。本次定向检索共返回751条结果，其中215篇文章符合纳入标准。随后对这215篇文章开展常规质性内容分析（qualitative content analysis），以记录大流行对癌症研究领域的影响。
结果：本研究的分析共提取出为数众多的质性记录的影响因素，并从中归纳出7类直接影响：（1）新冠防控措施完全中止癌症研究活动；（2）新冠防控措施限制癌症研究活动开展；（3）研究方案被迫调整；（4）对癌症诊断、病例及诊疗服务的影响；（5）癌症研究资源可及性变化；（6）对私营部门的冲击；（7）供应链中断。同时，从这些影响中还提炼出3类后续结果：（1）未来研究实践可能发生变革；（2）该领域的发展进程出现延迟；（3）出现潜在的新兴研究热点领域。
讨论：2020年，新冠大流行对癌症研究领域产生了广泛的实践与经济层面的影响，且影响类型极为多元。在后新冠时代评估癌症研究策略时，应充分考量诸多潜在的显著局限，例如财政资源受限、研究患者招募渠道收窄、患者获取癌症诊疗服务的机会减少、人员配置问题、行政流程延迟以及供应链问题，同时也应关注癌症诊疗差距的加剧、数字健康领域的进展，以及与癌症和新冠交叉相关的新兴研究方向。