Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mortality of women with breast cancer

This study aimed to analyze all cause, breast cancer-specific, and other cause age-adjusted mortality rates among Brazilian women with breast cancer, comparing periods before and during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. We analyzed mortality registries data of the Brazilian Unified Health System, from January 2017 to December 2022. Deaths were categorized as breast cancer-specific, breast cancer-contributory, and non-breast cancer mortality. Age-standardized and age-specific crude mortality rates were calculated using the World Health Organization standard population. Temporal trends were analyzed using Joinpoint Trend Analysis software. There were 124,031 deaths in those with breast cancer. Before the pandemic, 58,346 women with breast cancer died, of which 54,284 (93.03 percent) due to the disease. During the pandemic, 65,685 women with breast cancer died, of which 57,734 (87.89 percent) due to the disease. There was a 12.5 percent increase in the number of women dying with a breast cancer diagnosis during the pandemic, the proportion of breast cancer-specific deaths decreased, indicating that the additional mortality burden arose mainly from other causes. The diversion of healthcare resources to manage COVID-19 may have contributed to an increased mortality from other causes. Breast cancer survivors present high risk of mortality in health care crisis, such as the COVID-19 pandemic.