Changing Management of Hematological Malignancies With COVID-19: Statement and Recommendations of the Lebanese Society of Hematology and Blood Transfusion

Ahmad Ibrahim; Peter Noun; Charbel Khalil; Ali Taher

doi:10.3389/fonc.2021.564383

Changing Management of Hematological Malignancies With COVID-19: Statement and Recommendations of the Lebanese Society of Hematology and Blood Transfusion

Front Oncol. 2021 Mar 15:11:564383. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2021.564383. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Ahmad Ibrahim^{1

2

3

4}, Peter Noun^{5

6}, Charbel Khalil^{7

8}, Ali Taher^{4

9

10}

Affiliations

¹ Division of Hematology-Oncology, Department of Medicine, Lebanese and Arab Universities, Beirut, Lebanon.
² Cancer Center and Bone Marrow Transplantation (BMT) Program at Middle East Institute of Health, Bsalim, Lebanon.
³ Bone Marrow Transplantation (BMT) Program at Makassed University Hospital, Beirut, Lebanon.
⁴ Lebanese Society of Hematology and Blood Transfusion, Beirut, Lebanon.
⁵ Division of Pediatrics, Balamand University, Beirut, Lebanon.
⁶ Division of Pediatric Hematology-Oncology, Saint Georges University Medical Center, Beirut, Lebanon.
⁷ Bone Marrow Transplantation (BMT) Program at Middle East Institute of Health University Hospital, Beirut, Lebanon.
⁸ Faculty of Pharmacy, Saint Joseph University, Beirut, Lebanon.
⁹ Division of Hematology-Oncology, Department of Medicine, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon.
¹⁰ Cancer Center of the American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon.

Abstract

COVID-19 caused by SARS-Cov-2 is a devastating infection in patients with hematological malignancies. In 2018, the Lebanese Society of Hematology and Blood Transfusion (LSHBT) updated the guidelines for the management of hematological malignancies in Lebanon. In 2019, it was followed by a second update. Given the rapidly changing evidence and general situation for COVID-19, the LSHBT established some recommendations and suggestions for the management of the patients with hematological malignancies taking into account the Lebanese condition, economic situation, and the facts that SARS-Cov-2 infection has apparently been devastating. In this article we present recommendations and proposals to reduce or to manage SARS-Cov-2 infection in the patients with myeloid and lymphoid hematological malignancies.

Keywords: LSHBT; SARS-Cov-2 infection; hematological malignancies; lymphoid; myeloid.