Intensity-modulated radiation therapy as primary treatment for oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma. Academic Article uri icon

abstract

  • BACKGROUND: Over the past decade, intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) has gained widespread use in the treatment of head and neck cancer. METHODS: All patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the oropharynx treated with primary IMRT with or without chemotherapy over a 5-year period were reviewed. Outcomes and morbidity were analyzed and compared with previously published data. RESULTS: In all, 170 patients were included in the analysis. The 3-year local control, locoregional control, disease-free survival, and overall survival rates were 92%, 91%, 80%, and 87%, respectively. Feeding tubes were present in 55% of patients during treatment, but remained in only 1% 2 years following treatment. CONCLUSIONS: This study confirms that IMRT yields excellent treatment outcomes for oropharyngeal carcinoma. Although acute toxicity remains a problem, late toxicity rates are low and long-term feeding tube dependence is rare compared with conventional radiation therapy.

published proceedings

  • Head Neck

altmetric score

  • 0.25

author list (cited authors)

  • May, J. T., Rao, N., Sabater, R. D., Boutrid, H., Caudell, J. J., Merchant, F., ... Trotti, A.

citation count

  • 29

complete list of authors

  • May, James T||Rao, Nikhil||Sabater, Roberto D||Boutrid, Hinda||Caudell, Jimmy J||Merchant, Faisal||Han, Gang||Padhya, Tapan A||McCaffrey, Judith C||Tanvetyanon, Tawee||Deconti, Ronald||Kish, Julie||McCaffrey, Thomas V||Trotti, Andy

publication date

  • December 2013

publisher