Running a Radiation Oncology Department at the Time of Coronavirus: An Italian Experience

Marco Krengli; Eleonora Ferrara; Federico Mastroleo; Marco Brambilla; Umberto Ricardi

doi:10.1016/j.adro.2020.10.002

Running a Radiation Oncology Department at the Time of Coronavirus: An Italian Experience

Adv Radiat Oncol. 2020 Oct 29;5(Suppl 1):3-6. doi: 10.1016/j.adro.2020.10.002. eCollection 2020 Nov.

Authors

Marco Krengli^{1

2}, Eleonora Ferrara¹, Federico Mastroleo^{1

2}, Marco Brambilla³, Umberto Ricardi⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital "Maggiore della Carità," Novara, Italy.
² Department of Translational Medicine, University of Piemonte Orientale, Novara, Italy.
³ Department of Medical Physics, University Hospital "Maggiore della Carità," Novara, Italy.
⁴ Department of Oncology, University of Torino, Torino, Italy.

Abstract

Starting from Wuhan, China, SARS-CoV-2 has been a catastrophic epidemic involving many countries worldwide. After China, Italy has been heavily affected, and severe measures to limit the spread of the virus have been taken in the last weeks. Radiation oncology departments must guarantee optimal cancer treatments even in such a challenging scenario of an ongoing aggressive epidemic. Adopted preventive measures and recommendations are highlighted for patients, professionals, and clinical operations to minimize the risk of infection while safely treating patients with cancer.