Management of the N0 neck in early cancer of the oral tongue.
Elective treatment of the clinically negative neck in the management of early oral tongue cancers remains controversial. A retrospective review of 71 patients with T1, 2 N0M0 squamous cell carcinoma of the oral tongue treated at the Royal Marsden Hospital was carried out. Cervical nodal recurrence at 2 years was 17% in the group of patients who received elective neck treatment as compared to 43% in the group who had observation of the neck and the difference is statistically significant (P = 0.025). The difference in 5-year survival between the group who had elective neck treatment and the group who did not (75% versus 65%) was not statistically significant. Until future research allows us to be more selective on the basis of a reliable panel of histological and/or biological markers for propensity to nodal metastases, elective neck treatment should be considered in the initial management of the patients with early oral tongue cancer.
Yii
N W
NW
Head and Neck Unit, Royal Marsden Hospital, London, UK.
Patel
S G
SG
Rhys-Evans
P H
PH
Breach
N M
NM
D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000556:secondary / Q000628:therapy*; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D005260:Female; D005927:Glossectomy; D006801:Humans; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009333:Neck; D037981:Neck Dissection; D011882:Radiotherapy, High-Energy; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016019:Survival Analysis; D015996:Survival Rate; D014062:Tongue Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology* / Q000628:therapy