2. MATERIALS AND METHODS
Data of HNC patients treated with RT at the Radiation Oncology Department of the European Institute of Oncology IRCSS (Milan, Italy) were reviewed. The considered time frame encompassed the early phase of COVID-19 pandemic in Lombardy (1st March to 30th April 2020). The impact of the pandemic was analyzed as: 1) dedicated Departmental procedures for HNC, 2) treatment scheduling (i.e.: delays, interruptions), and 3) healthcare professionals’ protection was analyzed. As the current report focuses on outpatients treated with external beam RT, hospitalization and brachytherapy-related procedures are not described. Medical records from HNC patients were retrieved from electronic medical charts. This work was approved by the Ethical Committee of the European Institute of Oncology IRCSS (notification number IEO726). All patients signed a written informed consent for clinical research purposes.