[Present status of treatment in nasopharyngeal carcinoma?].
OBJECTIVE
Review of the evolution of combined treatment strategies in nasopharyngeal carcinoma.


RESULTS
Radiotherapy is accepted standard for treatment of nasopharyngeal cancer. Nevertheless, there is no uniform opinion with regard to doses, fractionation, technique or use of systemic chemotherapy. It is hardly possible to compare the results of recent and historical trials because of different staging systems and because nasopharyngeal cancer occurring in the Oceano-Asian region are biologically different to those in Western countries. Conclusions drawn from former, mostly retrospective analyses are not applicable to newer standards regarding the developments in diagnostics and therapy. Presently simultaneous chemoradiotherapy is standard for lymph node positive nasopharyngeal cancer.


CONCLUSIONS
It will be necessary to treat patients with different histologic subtypes with an uniform treatment schedule to define the place of combined modality treatment. This will probably be the only way to develop treatment concepts for distinct stages and biological entities.
Beckmann
Gabriele
G
Klinik und Poliklinik für Strahlentherapie, Universität Würzburg, Germany. Beckmann_G@klinik.uni-wuerzburg.de
Flentje
Michael
M
D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001918:Brachytherapy; D017024:Chemotherapy, Adjuvant; D017322:Clinical Trials, Phase II as Topic; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D019583:Dose Fractionation, Radiation; D006801:Humans; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D015337:Multicenter Studies as Topic; D009303:Nasopharyngeal Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D009305:Nasopharynx / Q000473:pathology; D020360:Neoadjuvant Therapy; D009362:Neoplasm Metastasis; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D011379:Prognosis; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011878:Radiotherapy / Q000009:adverse effects; D011879:Radiotherapy Dosage; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D012074:Remission Induction; D013997:Time Factors