The aim of our study was to compare the characteristics and time to initial physician contact in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) before and during the COVID-19 pandemic at a large Hungarian cancer center. This was a retrospective study of patients 18 years or older presenting at the regional cancer center of Pécs Clinical Center with HNSCC between 1 January 2017, and 15 March 2020 (the pre-COVID-19 period) and between 16 March 2020, and 13 May 2021 (the COVID-19 period). Demographic and clinical data were collected, and the time between initial symptom onset and initial physician contact (TTP) was determined. Descriptive and exploratory statistical analyses were performed. On average, the number of patients diagnosed with HNSCC per month during the pandemic decreased by 12.4% compared with the pre-COVID-19 period. There was a significant increase in stage I and stage II cancers (from 15.9% to 20.3% and from 12.2% to 13.8%, respectively; p < 0.001); a decrease in stage III and IVa,c cancers; and a significant increase in stage IVb cancers (from 6% to 19.9%; p < 0.001) during the pandemic. The median TTP increased during the pandemic from 43 to 61 days (p = 0.032). To our knowledge, this is the first study investigating the effect of COVID-19 on patients with HNSCC in the Central–Eastern European region. We found a bidirectional shift in cancer stages and increased TTP during the pandemic. Our findings highlight the necessity for more nuanced analyses of the effects of COVID-19.
本研究旨在比较匈牙利一家大型癌症中心在COVID-19疫情前后头颈部鳞状细胞癌（HNSCC）患者的临床特征及首次就医时间。这项回顾性研究纳入2017年1月1日至2020年3月15日（疫情前期）及2020年3月16日至2021年5月13日（疫情期）在佩奇临床中心区域癌症中心就诊的18岁及以上HNSCC患者。研究收集人口统计学和临床数据，并测定从首发症状到首次就医的时间间隔（TTP），进行描述性和探索性统计分析。结果显示：疫情期间每月确诊的HNSCC患者数量较疫情前平均下降12.4%；I期和II期癌症占比显著增加（分别从15.9%升至20.3%、12.2%升至13.8%，p < 0.001），III期和IVa,c期癌症占比下降，而IVb期癌症显著增加（从6%升至19.9%，p < 0.001）；疫情期间TTP中位数从43天延长至61天（p = 0.032）。据我们所知，这是中东欧地区首个探讨COVID-19对HNSCC患者影响的研究。我们发现疫情期间癌症分期呈现双向变化且TTP显著延长，这一发现凸显了对COVID-19影响进行更精细化分析的必要性。
肿瘤(癌症)患者之家