Prognostic value of regional metastasis in squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue and floor of mouth.
The presence of metastatic nodes is a survival-limiting factor for patients with mouth tumors.


OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the causes of treatment failure in carcinomas of the tongue and floor of the mouth due to staging.


METHODS
This study included 365 patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the mouth treated from 1978 to 2007; 48 were staged as T1, 156 as T2, 98 as T3, and 63 as T4, of which 193 were pNo and 172 pN+.


RESULTS
Among the pN+ cases, 17/46 (36.9%) of the patients not treated with radiation therapy had relapsing tumors, against 46/126 (36.5 %) of the patients who underwent radiation therapy. Success rates in the group of subjects submitted to salvage procedures were 16/51 (31.3%) for pN0 patients and 3/77 (3.9%) for pN+ patients.


CONCLUSIONS
Salvage procedure success and survival rates are lower for pN+ patients; pN+ individuals also have more relapsing local disease.
Departamento de Cirurgia de Cabeça e Pescoço e Otorrinolaringologia, Hospital Heliópolis, São PauloSP.
Ali
A
Amar
Departamento de Saúde, Hospital Heliópolis, São Paulo.
Abrão
A
Rapoport
Departamento de Cirurgia de Cabeça e Pescoço e Otorrinolaringologia, Hospital Heliópolis, São Paulo.
Otávio Alberto
OA
Curioni
Departamento de Cirurgia de Cabeça e Pescoço, Hospital das Clínicas, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de São Paulo.
Rogério Aparecido
RA
Dedivitis
Departamento de Cirurgia de Cabeça e Pescoço, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de São Paulo.
Claudio Roberto
CR
Cernea
Departamento de Cirurgia de Cabeça e Pescoço, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de São Paulo.
Lenine Garcia
LG
Brandão
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000401:mortality* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009060:Mouth Floor / Q000473:pathology*; D009062:Mouth Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D011379:Prognosis; D012008:Recurrence; D014062:Tongue Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D055815:Young Adult