COVID-19 and Cancer Care: an update for healthcare professionals

Presented by the Victorian COVID-19 Cancer Network Taskforce

As the next COVID-19 wave swells in Victoria, tune in for an expert update on the latest advice and protections for patients with cancer.

• New variants and vaccinations – an update
• Evusheld prevention options
• Criteria and access for antivirals – Lagevrio vs Paxlovid and where to assess drug-drug interactions
• Overcoming COVID message fatigue among patients
• A COVID-19 Action Plan – resources and tools from Cancer Council Victoria

The new COVID-19 wave emerging in Victoria threatens a perfect storm with new sub-variants coinciding with waning protection from vaccinations/infections as well as the removal of most mandated protection measures.

New sub-variants of Coronavirus are increasingly appearing in Government statistics and clinical breakdowns of the virus’ spread.  The BQ1 and XBB sub-variants of Omicron have surged overseas and are picking up here. It’s likely that they’ll take over the BA5 subvariant that’s been dominant for the past several months.

With uncertainty about what these new variants bring, there are concerns about what could it mean for the spread and severity of the disease – and the impact on vulnerable members of the community including people with cancer.

Host

Professor Sue-Anne McLachlan

Director of Oncology and Cancer Services, St Vincent’s Hospital, Melbourne.

Panel

Dr Ben Teh

Clinician-researcher at Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre and the National Centre for Infections in Cancer with primary clinical and research interests in infections in patients with cancer.

Ms Danielle Spence

Head of Division, Strategy and Support, Cancer Council Victoria

Thursday 1 December
5.00-5.45pm

This virtual event will be hosted via Zoom. Zoom is accessible on your computer, tablet or phone via the Zoom app. If you have any issues with this platform on your device, please visit the Zoom support site. Alternatively please contact your IT administrator.