Basaloid squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity: an analysis of 92 cases.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS: Basaloid squamous cell carcinoma (BSCC) is considered a rare and possibly more aggressive squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) variant. Until now, a series of exclusively oral cavity BSCC patients has not been previously reported. We endeavored to compare BSCC and SCC of the oral cavity, focusing on epidemiologic factors and survival outcomes. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective analysis of population-based data. METHODS: We compared epidemiologic factors, clinicopathologic data, and disease-specific survivals (DSS) between 92 patients with oral cavity BSCC and 15,181 patients with SCC. RESULTS: High-grade tumors and distant metastases were more common in the BSCC group (P≤0.001). On multivariable analysis controlling for disease stage, BSCC patients had similar DSS to those with typical SCC (P=0.231). Although there was a trend favoring definitive radiotherapy for BSCC, there were no significant differences in treatment approach between BSCC and SCC. The choice of treatment modality (radiation, surgery±radiation) did not reveal a difference in DSS between the two tumor subtypes. CONCLUSION: Analysis of the largest oral cavity BSCC series to date demonstrates that BSCC of the oral cavity carries a comparable prognosis to conventional-type oral SCC. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE 2b.