Brachytherapy with permanent gold grain seeds for squamous cell carcinoma of the lip.
OBJECTIVE
To describe the use of radioactive gold grain implantation for squamous cell carcinoma of the lip.


METHODS
Retrospective review of 51 patients treated with permanent gold ((198)Au) grain implant brachytherapy. The seed arrangement delivered a dose of 5500 cGy at 0.5 cm from a single plane. Primary endpoints were local recurrence and cosmetic outcome.


RESULTS
Median follow-up was 27 months. Median age was 69 years. The majority (90%) were T1 lesions. None of the patients had evidence of regional lymph node or distant metastasis. Twelve patients had recurrent disease with prior surgery and five patients had previous head and neck radiation. Local control was achieved in 49 patients. Good cosmesis was achieved in 48 patients. Two-year actuarial estimates for local failure-free survival, disease-free survival and overall survival were 97.9%, 94.1% and 87.9%, respectively; no deaths were attributable to lip cancer.


CONCLUSIONS
Gold grain interstitial low-dose rate brachytherapy provides excellent local control and cosmesis in patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the lip. This technique provides an excellent option for patients that are elder or live remotely. It is particularly useful for lesions that are small, in previously radiated areas, or treated with prior surgery.
Department of Radiation Oncology, London Regional Cancer Program, University of Western Ontario, 790 Commissioners Road East, London, ON, Canada. Michael.lock@lhsc.on.ca
Michael
M
Lock
Jeffrey Q
JQ
Cao
David P
DP
D'Souza
James A
JA
Hammond
Scott
S
Karnas
Craig
C
Lewis
Varagur M
VM
Venkatesan
Emily
E
Whiston
Gary
G
Yau
Edward
E
Yu
James
J
Gilchrist
George B
GB
Rodrigues
D000368:Aged; D001918:Brachytherapy; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000401:mortality / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D005260:Female; D006050:Gold Radioisotopes / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D008048:Lip Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D008297:Male; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D006050:Gold Radioisotopes