Impact of State of Emergency Declaration for COVID-19 on Cancer Screening Behavior in Japan

Status of cancer screening behavior is changing due to the effects of the state of emergency for Covid-19 in Japan. Based on data from three medical institutions that provide cancer screening throughout Japan, we compared the number of examinees undergoing cancer screening by month in 2019 and 2020. From April to May 2020, the number of examinees decreased by about 50-80% compared to the previous year, but after June, recovered to the same level as previous year. In addition, the number of examinees undergoing resident cancer screening tended to decrease more than that of occupational screening. The causes of the decrease are 1. examinee was wary of the risk of infection at the examination site. 2. medical institution postponed cancer screening because the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare issued a notice to refrain from endoscopy, which is less urgent. 3. It was considered that the municipalities that carried out the examinations were wary of the spread of the infection and postponed or canceled the recommendation of the cancer screening. Key messages Declaration of emergency has reduced the number of cancer screening examinees. Impact on cancer mortality will be an issue for the future.