The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the clinical stage of laryngeal cancer

<b>Introduction:</b> The COVID-19 pandemic, which lasted from 2019 to 2023, caused a significant stagnation in the healthcare system, not only in our country but also worldwide. Data from the National Cancer Registry for 2020 confirms a decrease of approximately 15% for men and 14% for women in diagnosed cancers compared to 2019.<b>Aim:</b> The aim of this study was to examine the baseline clinical stage of laryngeal cancer (using the TNM scale) of the larynx in the population of patients diagnosed at the Multispecialty Regional Hospital in Gorzow Wielkopolski between 2017 and 2024.<b>Materials and methods:</b> The author conducted a retrospective analysis of the initial clinical stage according to the TNM scale in patients over 18 years of age diagnosed with laryngeal cancer. The division into groups, the study group (n = 65) and the control group (n = 76), was based on the date of histopathological diagnosis (31.01.2020). The analysis also included the necessity of performing a tracheostomy, the size of the primary lesion, and metastatic changes.<b>Results:</b> Squamous cell carcinomas were most frequently diagnosed in the middle part of the larynx (61.84% of the control population and 70.77% of the study population) on the right side (61.84% of the control population and 61.54% of the study cohort). The percentage of patients requiring tracheostomy increased by approximately 3%. There was also an increase in the percentage of patients with T4a (+11.15%) and N2c (+6.39%) features. An increase in the number of patients in stage IVa (+19.74%) was noted. Despite the observed differences between the populations, they were not statistically significant.<b>Discussion:</b> There was an increase in the number of tracheostomies performed due to sudden dyspnea, including those performed under local anesthesia. Data confirms an increase in the size of the diagnosed tumor and metastatic changes.<b>Conclusions:</b> After the outbreak of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, an increased percentage of patients requiring tracheostomy due to sudden dyspnea was noted. The size (in terms of dimension and extent of infiltration) of tumors in the primary location and metastases in the cervical lymphatic system also increased. A decrease in the number of patients with distant metastatic changes was observed. The observed differences were not statistically significant. It is necessary to conduct studies on a larger population.