title: Health related quality of life after mandibular resection for oral and oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma.
abstract: The impact of several clinical parameters on health related quality of life (HrQOL) was evaluated in patients with squamous cell carcinoma adjacent or fixed to the mandible with special emphasis on postoperative radiotherapy and type of mandibular resection. One-hundred and five returned EORTC-questionnaires were available for this study. Correlation analyses were used to determine the relationship between clinical parameters and HrQOL. Postoperative radiotherapy was the clinical parameter that affected HrQOL most. The type of mandibular resection had no influence on HrQOL. The affected QOL-items were all associated with eating problems, i.e. use of a feeding tube, use of nutritional supplements, swallowing, social eating, mouth opening and dry mouth. Postoperative radiotherapy should only be applied if strictly indicated. This implies that the application of postoperative radiotherapy may need reconsideration in cases without strict criteria for postoperative radiotherapy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, Geert Grooteplein Zuid 14, P.O. Box 9101, 6500 HB Nijmegen, The Netherlands. e.m.vancann@kmb.azu.nl
authors.forename: Ellen M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Van Cann
authors.forename: Marc
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Dom
authors.forename: Ron
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Koole
authors.forename: Matthias A W
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Merkx
authors.forename: Paul J W
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Stoelinga
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000532:radiotherapy / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008334:Mandible / Q000601:surgery*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009062:Mouth Neoplasms / Q000532:radiotherapy / Q000601:surgery*; D009959:Oropharyngeal Neoplasms / Q000532:radiotherapy / Q000601:surgery*; D011182:Postoperative Care; D011788:Quality of Life; D018714:Radiotherapy, Adjuvant / Q000592:standards; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires