Efficacy of prophylactic elective neck dissection in the treatment of cancer of the larynx.
The effectiveness of elective neck dissection for treatment of cancers of the head and neck is controversial. We report a restrospective study of 142 patients treated at our hospital between 1974 and 1994 for squamous cell carcinomas of the supraglottic larynx. At the time of surgery, none of the patients had palpable cervical adenopathy. All patients underwent tumour resection, while 55 additionally underwent functional elective neck dissection. Elective neck dissection had no significant effects on either the risk of subsequent development of ipsilateral cervical adenopathy or on survival. In view of these results, we do not consider elective neck dissection to be beneficial as a routine strategy for management of carcinomas affecting the supraglottic larynx.
Soto Varela
A
A
Complejo Hospitalario de Santiago School of Medicine, University of Santiago, Spain.
Frade Gonzalez
C
C
del Rio Valeiras
M
M
Valez Regueiro
M
M
Labella Caballero
T
T
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D017558:Elective Surgical Procedures; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007822:Laryngeal Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D037981:Neck Dissection; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016896:Treatment Outcome