The coronavirus pandemic has thrown a wrench into plans for hundreds of clinical trials seeking therapies for diseases beyond Covid-19. But some investigators and sponsors are trying to push ahead, tailoring ways to keep patients enrolled while keeping them safe and to ensure the trial can still produce rigorous evidence of whether or not a drug works.

Getting the news that you have cancer is overwhelming and frightening. The COVID-19 crisis adds another layer of anxiety. But know this: you can protect yourself from COVID-19 without compromising your cancer treatment. Don’t panic. In the vast majority of cases, a diagnosis of cancer is not an emergency even though it feels like one. There is time to learn about your options and sort out what is right for you.

As the coronavirus overwhelms the health care system, people with other illnesses struggle to find treatment.

The Angel Foundation, based in Mendota Heights, told 5 EYEWITNESS News they had received many calls from cancer patients who are struggling financially due to lack of work and medical bills.

As the coronavirus pandemic intensified, so did Catherine Payne’s strategies for avoiding infection while undergoing chemotherapy. The 33-year-old West Town woman was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer in November and began treatment soon after, suppressing her immune system.

Coronavirus stopped Carol Ann Horn’s cancer treatments before they could even get started. Her surgery was canceled because of state orders that aim to stop the spread of COVID-19 by postponing certain surgeries.

The federal government has encouraged health centers to delay nonessential surgeries while weighing the severity of patients’ conditions and the availability of personal protective equipment, beds and staffing at hospitals.

Treatments like chemotherapy can weaken immune systems, making cancer patients more likely to contract Covid-19

As the coronavirus pandemic spreads, the normal touchstones of everyday life have vanished without so much as a warning. In their place are terrifying thoughts about the future, about loss and about mortality.

Two days before Christine Rayburn was scheduled to have a cancerous tumor removed, the hospital cancelled the surgery, part of a wave of cancellations of "elective" surgeries during the coronavirus pandemic. But Rayburn's surgeon fought back, and got the surgery back on the schedule 10 days later.

Last weekend, Valerie received a call from an oncology supervisor at Sutter General Hospital, who advised her to stay away from the emergency room during a COVID-19 surge.

Heather Chaney, 49, is a stay-at-home mom from Bellevue, Washington. She was diagnosed with cervical cancer in mid-February 2020, just weeks before the coronavirus outbreak overwhelmed the state.

For nearly 40 years, Patricia Duffy has sat at her husband’s side. The two are inseparable, having built a life together, having raised three children together..

A leading oncologist has said “the highest priority” sufferers may “not be able to get treatment and this is a tragedy”.

Cancer patients are facing delays in treatment as hospitals and doctors focus their efforts on fighting the coronavirus.

A local patient with an advanced cancer says she’s fearful after being told her upcoming treatment has been postponed.

Patients and doctors struggle to confront the twin threats of cancer and covid-19. While many treatments won’t be changed, some surgeries can be safely postponed, say doctors who are trying to reduce patients’ time in the hospital.

Here are some questions that all chemotherapy patients should ask their oncologist