[Election for surgery access to skull base].
OBJECTIVE
To seek for a better approach for the resection of skull base tumors.


METHODS
A review of 84 skull base tumors resection employed unlike operative approach in the Cancer Hospital of Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences was presented. Surgical approach feature of invaded the different position of skull base, selects the best operative access for safely removes the tumor, protects the critical structure of skull base as fully as possible, and decreases the complication were discussed in this article.


RESULTS
Fourteen cases of benign and seventy cases of malignant underwent surgery. The tumor in 38 cases implicated parapharyngeal space and skull base. The lesion synchronously involved the anterior and middle cranial fossa in 7 cases, middle and posterior cranial fossa in 13 cases, lateral cranial base in 26 cases. The survival rate at 3 years was 68.5% (27/40) for malignant tumor. There was no operative death and severe complication in this series.


CONCLUSIONS
To select the best operation access should think over following factors: 1. Tumor position and the scope implicated. 2. Safely and fully removal of the tumor. 3. The limited destroy to normal function structure and receivable cosmetic effect. 4. It is convenient to reliable reconstruction.
Wu
Yuehuang
Y
Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Peking Union Medical University, Beijing 100021, China. wuyuehuang@hotmail.com
Qi
Yongfa
Y
Tang
Pingzhang
P
Xu
Zhengang
Z
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013517:Otorhinolaryngologic Surgical Procedures / Q000379:methods; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D019292:Skull Base Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery*