Value of laryngeal cartilage sclerosis as a predictor of outcome in patients with stage T3 glottic cancer treated with radiation therapy.
OBJECTIVE
To determine whether sclerosis of the laryngeal cartilages was a predictor of a poor outcome in patients with stage T3 glottic cancer treated with radiation therapy.


METHODS
Thirty-three patients with stage T3 glottic cancer underwent computed tomography (CT) before radiation therapy. Twenty-two patients underwent posttreatment CT. The presence of cartilage sclerosis, cartilage erosion, marrow invasion, and cartilage necrosis was determined.


RESULTS
Nineteen of the 33 patients had cartilage sclerosis at CT. Seventeen patients had sclerosis of a single laryngeal cartilage (14 arytenoid, two cricoid, and one thyroid), and two had sclerosis of adjacent laryngeal cartilages (arytenoid and cricoid in both cases). Of the 17 patients with isolated laryngeal cartilage sclerosis, disease was controlled with radiation therapy alone in 15 and with salvage laryngectomy in two. Both patients with cricoid and arytenoid sclerosis died of their original cancer despite undergoing early salvage laryngectomy. Of the 14 patients without sclerosis, eight had no evidence of disease, two died of their disease, and four died of intercurrent disease.


CONCLUSIONS
T3 glottic cancer with isolated laryngeal cartilage sclerosis can be cured with radiation therapy.
Department of Radiology, University of Florida, Gainesville 32610.
R P
RP
Tart
S K
SK
Mukherji
W R
WR
Lee
A A
AA
Mancuso
D005931:Glottis; D006801:Humans; D007817:Laryngeal Cartilages / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D007822:Laryngeal Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D011379:Prognosis; D012598:Sclerosis; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed