Warning of the COVID-19 Novel Variant: Is the COVID-19 Omicron Variant a Real Danger for Cancer Patients or Not?

In late December 2019, the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) was first presented in the Hubei province of China as pneumonia of unknown cause, which has caused millions of deaths up to now (1). Studies indicated the most common signs and symptoms of the conventional COVID-19 variants as fever, cough, dyspnea, and fatigue. In advanced stages, this mysterious viral disease leads to acute respiratory distress syndrome, acute cardiac damage, as well as gastrointestinal manifestations (2). In late 2021, the emergence of the new COVID-19 variant, called the Omicron variant, started a new global pandemic wave and was stated as a “version of concern (VOC)” by the World Health Organization (3). Despite our little knowledge about the COVID-19 Omicron variant, some evidence presented the milder manifestation of this new variant than the previous variants, probably due to the global vaccination effects. However, few new theories and studies indicated the life-threatening aspects of the Omicron variant (3). As indicated in our previous study, cancer patients are in danger of COVID-19 (4); however, seemingly, the Omicron variant has made a novel situation for these patients. Therefore, in the present study, the authors briefly investigated whether the COVID-19 Omicron variant is threatening cancer patients or not?