Acute Leukemia and COVID-19: The Johns Hopkins Experience

Introduction: At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, some states combated viral spread via lockdowns. In Maryland, where Johns Hopkins Hospital (JHH) is located, the closures began with public schools (March 12, 2020; 3/12/20); followed by bars, restaurants, movie theaters, gyms and gatherings of >50 people (3/16/20) with 250 Maryland State Police troopers being activated to aid in enforcement. All non-essential businesses were closed on 3/23/20, with a statewide “stay-at-home order” announced on 3/30/20. At this time, we anecdotally noted a decline in the number of adult patients presenting to JHH with new diagnoses of acute leukemia (AL). In this retrospective study, we quantified changes in new AL diagnoses over this period.