• Seung Hee Seo, Sooyoung Cho, Shin Hye Yoo, Bhumsuk Keam, and Aesun Shin.
• Cancer Research Institute, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea.
• Yonsei Med. J. 2023 Jul 1; 64 (7): 463470463-470.

PurposeThe first year of the COVID-19 pandemic in Korea elicited changes in healthcare service utilization. This study aimed to report changes in healthcare service utilization among cancer patients during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic in Korea.Materials And MethodsWe analyzed records from National Health Insurance Service Database and identified cancer patients as those with specific beneficiary codes ("V193" or "V194") assigned to cancer patients. We calculated percentage changes in the number of patients between 2019 and 2020 based on claims records for outpatient clinic visits, hospitalization, and emergency room visits by month, age group, residential areas, and hospital location.ResultsThe number of newly diagnosed cancer patients in 2020 decreased by 3.2%, compared to the previous year. The number of patients who visited an outpatient clinic, were hospitalized, and visited the emergency room decreased by 2.6%, 4.0%, and 3.5%, respectively, in 2020, compared to the year 2019.ConclusionDuring the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of newly diagnosed cancer patients decreased by 3.2%, compared to the previous year, and their utilization of healthcare services declined significantly after the outbreak of COVID-19.© Copyright: Yonsei University College of Medicine 2023.

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