title: Recurrent nasopharyngeal carcinoma: a clinical dilemma and challenge.
abstract: Recurrent nasopharyngeal carcinoma, which represents a small proportion of head-and-neck cancers, has a unique set of patho-clinical characteristics. The management of recurrent nasopharyngeal carcinoma remains a challenging clinical problem. Traditional treatments offer limited local control and survival benefits; more seriously, they frequently induce severe late complications. Recently, novel treatment techniques and strategies-including precision radiotherapy, endoscopic surgery or transoral robotic resection, third-generation chemotherapy regimens, and targeted therapies and immunotherapy-have provided new hope for patients with recurrent nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Some of these patients can potentially be cured with modern treatments. However, a lack of adequate evidence makes it difficult for clinicians to apply these powerful techniques and strategies. Individualized management guidelines, full evaluation of quality of life in these patients, and a further understanding of the mechanisms underlying recurrence are future directions for research into recurrent nasopharyngeal carcinoma.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiation Oncology, First People's Hospital of Foshan Affiliated to Sun Yat-Sen University, Foshan, PR China. ; Department of Pathophysiology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, PR China.
authors.forename: Tao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gu
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yang
keywords: Nasopharyngeal carcinoma; biotherapy; chemotherapy; radiotherapy; recurrence; surgery