The authors chose to study lung cancer because it has current screening guidelines (e.g., low-dose CT scan) and has lower survival. Between March and May of 2020, cancer registries recorded far fewer cases than expected. New cases of lung cancer fell by about 40% in April 2020. While the rate of new cancer diagnoses hovered around predicted levels in the second half of 2020, it did not make up for the drop seen between March and May.

Observed/Expected Ratio of Lung cancer diagnoses by Month of Diagnosis, 2020. Between March and May of 2020, cancer registries recorded far fewer cases than expected. New cases of pancreatic cancer fell by about 20% in April 2020. While the rate of new cancer diagnoses hovered around predicted levels in the second half of 2020, it did not completely make up for the drop seen between March and May.