SARS-CoV-2 in upper and lower airway samples of a laryngectomized patient: New insights and many lessons

Highlights • Despite upper airways are functionally excluded, we are the first to report the presence of SARS-CoV-2 in the nasopharyngeal swab of a laryngectomized patient; • The primary nasal viral infection is not a mere anatomical constraint but it underlies an immunological priming that can condition the systemic inflammatory response; • Head and neck cancer patients have very often a significant history of smoking exposure and this makes them more susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 as well as to the development of multiple malignancies.