Surgical management of hepato-pancreato-biliary cancers in Covid-19 pandemic: perspective from the developing world

Coronavirus disease has dismantled the health care systems in the world and the situation is worse in the developing countries. One of the biggest challenges faced by clinicians in this situation is the optimal management of cancer patients. Hepato-pancreato-biliary [HPB] malignancies are the most aggressive cancers among other gastrointestinal cancers. Timely surgical intervention is the only cure for resectable tumours. However, resource limitations in hospitals, economic crisis and the lockdown in the current pandemic have forced clinicians to choose alternate non-surgical therapies to get temporary control of disease with the hope to provide definitive surgical management once the situation gets better. In this communication, we provide a summary of the management guidelines for HPB cancers and their application in the developing world.