Factors associated with delay in diagnosis of oral cancers.

BACKGROUND: Oral cancer is one of the ten most common malignancies in the world and approximately 90 % of cases are OSCC. Despite the progress in available treatment modalities, the mortality of patients with OSCC has remained steadily high during the last 20 years. Survival data is strongly influenced by the timing of diagnosis: with more than 50 % of patients being diagnosed at an advanced stage, and their 5-year survival rate being less than 50 %. Therefore, early diagnosis plays a crucial role in improving a patient's prognosis, as early stage cancers show a survival rate of over 90 %, whereas it drops to 5-20 % stage III and IV disease. This prospective study has been conducted with an aim of assessing diagnostic delays and looking at the various patient and tumour factors and their association with them. METHODOLOGY: This prospective observational study was conducted from December 2023 to February 2024. The cases for the present study included cases of oral squamous cell carcinoma diagnosed by clinical, radiological and/or histological confirmation. The patient delay was recorded in days as informed by the patients themselves, about the onset of their symptoms to time taken to seek medical attention. This was then associated with various patient and tumour related factors. RESULT: A total of 120 (n) patients were interviewed and these patient's case sheets were recruited for the present study. The median primary delay for the entire population was found to be 90 days while the median secondary delay was 11 days. The median total delay was found to be 106 days. The median total delay was higher among females and younger population though this was not statistically significant. However education showed a significant impact with literate patients presenting much earlier. Smoking and alcohol abuse did not show a significant effect on delay. Various tumour factors also did not show any statistically significant effect on delay although, patients with advanced stage and nodal secondaries presented at a much later time. CONCLUSION: Both patient and tumour related factors as well as the decisions made during the first contact with health care providers influence delay before specialist consultation. Raising awareness of HNC symptoms among the general population and GPs is the way to get patients to curative treatment without long delay.

Treatment Outcomes of Adenoid Cystic Carcinomas of the Head and Neck Region-A Single-Institution Experience.

Malu RafiObjectives This study was undertaken to evaluate the characteristics and treatment outcomes of patients with adenoid cystic carcinomas of the head and neck region treated at a tertiary cancer center in south India. Materials and Methods This was a retrospective study done on patients treated at the institute between 2004 and 2011. Clinicopathological details and treatment outcomes were captured from the treatment records to estimate the treatment outcomes and factors affecting them. Results There were a total of 140 patients with mean age of presentation of 46 years and a median follow-up of 65 months. The most common single site of presentation was the oral cavity. One-hundred eighteen patients (84.3%) underwent primary surgical resection in which 38% had negative surgical margins. Ninety-nine patients were given adjuvant radiotherapy and 18 patients received radical radiotherapy, mostly for surgically inaccessible and inoperable tumors. Median time to recurrence and distant metastasis was 37 and 34 months, respectively. The overall survival and disease-free survival estimate using the Kaplan-Meier method were 92.3 and 71.9%, respectively, at 5 years. Surgical removal of the primary tumor and the nodal stage had the most significant impact on the overall survival outcomes of these patients. Conclusion Surgery remains the most impactful treatment modality in the management of these rare epithelial tumors. The use of adjuvant radiotherapy may help to tackle the issues of perineural spread and inadequate surgical margins in technically difficult sites. Radical radiotherapy also has impressive response rates.

Spectrum of malignant scalp tumours and its impact on management-a tertiary care cancer centre experience.

BACKGROUND: Tumours on the scalp are diverse and often exhibit site- and histology-specific characteristics. Reconstructing the scalp after oncological resection has always been challenging because of its unique anatomy. METHODOLOGY: A retrospective review of patients with malignant scalp tumour operated on at a single institution over 10 years was performed. Data were collected and analysed regarding the scalp tumour profile, treatment, and the outcome of these procedures. RESULTS: Of the 66 patients in our study, 33 (50%) had SCC. In addition to this, 21% were sarcomas, 17% were appendageal carcinomas, 11% were BCCs, and 1% was neuroendocrine carcinoma. Cortical erosion was observed in 6 patients in the CT imaging, all with SCC histology. Among the eight patients with pathological nodal involvement, three had angiosarcoma, three had SCC, one had appendageal carcinoma, and one had neuroendocrine carcinoma. The mean surgical defect size was 67.4 cm2. The surgical defect was reconstructed with local flaps in 58% of patients and primary closure in 27%. Local and systemic recurrence was noted in 25% of patients. Tumour size more than 6 cm, tumour histology (SCC & sarcoma), unplanned margin-positive excision, and residual disease in re-excision had higher recurrence, even though the p-value was not significant. CONCLUSION: Scalp tumours are heterogeneous in their clinical profiles. Often, its tumour biology and microscopic extent are underestimated. High suspicion, histological diagnosis, and clear surgical margins are all requirements in successfully treating scalp tumours. In order to minimize morbidity and restore an aesthetic and functional outcome, it is critical to use the simplest scalp reconstruction whenever possible.

Impact of COVID-19 on Disease Progression and Postoperative Complications in Patients with Head and Neck Cancer.

The COVID-19 pandemic has created a remarkable challenge for the healthcare system. The delayed presentation, diagnosis, and treatment of head and neck cancer during the COVID-19 pandemic is expected to adversely affect outcomes. COVIDSurg collaborative group in 2020 concluded surgery ≥ 4 weeks after a positive COVID-19 swab result was associated with a lower risk of postoperative mortality. The aim of this study is to assess the disease progression due to COVID-19 infection in patients with head and neck cancer planned for surgery and to analyze the postoperative complications in head and neck cancer patients who underwent surgery after COVID-19 infection. This is an ambispective observational study and included patients with head and neck cancer who recovered from COVID-19 infection and underwent surgery from June 2020 to May 2022. There were a total of 1849 patients with head and neck cancer operated in the mentioned study period during COVID-19 pandemic. One hundred fifty-nine patients had documented COVID-19 infection. One hundred two patients had oral cavity carcinoma (64%), and 38 patients had thyroid carcinoma (23.8%). Early disease was noted in 49 patients (30.8%) and locally advanced disease in 108 patients (67.9%). Mean duration of delay in surgery was 4 weeks. Disease progression was noted in 27 patients (17%) out of which 15 patients were inoperable. Thirty-seven out of 159 patients (23%) had postoperative complications, and it included 2 mortality. There was increased trend noted in pulmonary complications and hemorrhage when compared to pre-COVID-19 era. Due to COVID-19 pandemic, delayed elective head and neck cancer surgery has resulted in higher rates of inoperability. COVID-19 has been associated with increased postoperative pulmonary complications and hemorrhage.

Predictive factors for nodal recurrence in differentiated thyroid cancers.

INTRODUCTION: Differentiated thyroid carcinoma usually has a good prognosis. Primary treatment is surgery, followed by radioactive iodine ablation based on risk stratification. The incidence of local and distant recurrence is 30%. Recurrence can be managed surgically or with multiple cycles of radioactive iodine ablation. There are multiple risk factors for structural disease recurrence proposed by the American Thyroid Association. In this study, we attempted to study the risk factors of structural recurrence in differentiated carcinoma thyroid and the pattern of recurrence in patients with node negative thyroid cancer who underwent total thyroidectomy. METHODOLOGY: This study selected a retrospective cohort of 1498 patients with differentiated thyroid cancer: out of these, 137 patients who presented after thyroidectomy with cervical nodal recurrence from January 2017 to December 2020 were included. The risk factors for central and lateral lymph node metastasis were analysed by univariate and multivariate analyses, including age, gender, T-stage, extrathyroidal extension, multifocality and high-risk variants. In addition, the presence of TERT/BRAF mutations was studied as a risk factor for central and lateral nodal recurrence. RESULTS: Out of 1498 patients, 137 who fit the inclusion criteria were analysed. Majority were female (73%); mean age was 43.1 years. Lateral compartment neck nodal recurrence was more common (84%), while isolated central compartment nodal recurrence occurred only in 16%. Most recurrences were seen in the first 1 year (23.3%) or after 10 years post-total thyroidectomy (35.7%). On univariate variate analysis, multifocality, extrathyroidal extension and high-risk variants stage were significant factors for nodal recurrence. However, on multivariate analysis for lateral compartment recurrence, multifocality, extrathyroidal extension and age were found to be significant. On multivariate analysis, multifocality, extrathyroidal extension and presence of high-risk variants were significant predictors of central compartment nodal metastasis. ROC curve analysis showed AUC for ETE (AUC-0.795), multifocality (AUC-0.860), presence of high-risk variants (AUC-0.727) and T-stage (AUC-0.771) as sensitive predictive factors for central compartment. 69 percent patients with very early recurrences (<6 month) had TERT/BRAF V600 E mutations. CONCLUSION: In our study, we have noted extrathyroidal extension and multifocality as significant risk factors for nodal recurrence. BRAF and TERT mutations are associated with aggressive clinical course and early recurrences. There is limited role of prophylactic central compartment node dissection.

Clinico pathological characteristics and survival outcome in oral cavity cancer with masticator space involvement (T4b) - A single institutional experience.

INTRODUCTION: Oral cavity cancer with the masticator space involvement is considered as very advanced localised diseas e and staged as T4b in AJCC 8th edition. NCCN guidelines consider this as inoperable. This study intends to compare the different treatment modalities in T4b oral cavity cancer and their impact on survival. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This is a retrospective study of 150 patients with T4b oral cavity ca, from 2013to 2015 and follow up data till 31 st July 2019 were collected. All patients had biopsy proven SCC and CT evidence of masticator space involvement. RESULTS: Total of 150 patients were included. 102 patients had received curative treatment and 48 patients had received palliative treatment. In the curative group 84% were treated with surgery and adjuvant treatment and remaining had received RT with or without chemotherapy. 90% patients in the surgically treated group had attained margin negative resection. 4 year OS in the curatively treated group was 58.9% and in the palliative group was 12%. The surgically treated patients in the curative arm had a significant survival advantage over the patients who had received only RT with or without chemotherapy, (63.5% v/s 34%, p = 0.001). CONCLUSION: Curatively treated oral cavity cancer with masticator space involvement has survival outcome comparable to the published survival data of those without masticator space involvement. Radical intent treatment, preferably surgery should be offered to all patients with masticator space involvement, if negative margin is anticipated from preoperative imaging.

Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma Arising from Thyroglossal Cyst-an Institutional Experience over a Decade.

Papillary carcinoma constitutes 80% of thyroglossal duct cyst carcinoma (TGCC). The mainstay of treatment for TGCC is Sistrunk procedure. Due to lack of clear-cut guidelines in managing TGCC, the role of total thyroidectomy, neck dissection and adjuvant radioiodine therapy is still debatable. This was a retrospective study which included cases of TGCC treated in our institution over a period of 11 years. The aim of study was to assess the need for total thyroidectomy in management of TGCC. Patients were divided into two groups based on the surgical treatment they underwent and the treatment outcomes were compared. The histology was papillary carcinoma in all cases of TGCC. Overall, 43.3% of TGCCs had a focus of papillary carcinoma in total thyroidectomy specimen. Lymph node metastasis was noted only in 10% of TGCC and not identified in isolated papillary carcinoma confined to thyroglossal cyst. 7-year overall survival (OS) for TGCC was 83.1%. Prognostic factors like extracapsular extension or lymph node metastasis did not affect OS. Addition of total thyroidectomy and neck dissection to Sistrunk procedure did not offer any survival advantage. In a case of TGCC, FNAC should be done from any clinically suspicious thyroid nodules or lymph nodes. TGCC has a good prognosis following treatment and none of the cases in our series has disease recurrence during follow-up. Sistrunk procedure was an adequate procedure for treatment of TGCC with clinically and radiologically normal thyroid gland.

AJCC 8th Versus AJCC 7th as a Prognostic Indicator in Buccal Mucosal Squamous Cell Carcinoma.

American Joint Committee for Cancer (AJCC) staging manual has been recently updated with 8th edition which led to an immense shift in the tumor, node, and composite stages, in comparison to the previous staging. This was mainly due to the incorporation of depth of invasion (DOI) and extranodal extension (ENE) in staging. The impact of new staging system is widely studied as combined subsites in oral cancer. This study is to focus on a single subsite of oral cavity which is known for its poor prognosis. We evaluated 109 patients who had buccal mucosal squamous cell carcinomas (BSCC) who underwent treatment, with a curative intend, between 2014 and 2015. Clinical records were reviewed and the tumors were re-staged as per 8th edition of AJCC; disease-free survival (DFS) was also analyzed. Our study population had a mean age of 54.5 ± 10.35 years and male to female ratio of 4:1. During a median follow-up of 41 months, 35 patients (32.1%) developed recurrence. There was a statistically significant shift in stages between AJCC 7th edition against AJCC 8th edition leading to 34% upshift in T-stage, 43.1% upshift in N-stage, eventually leading to a 23.9% upshift in the composite stage. Tumors which got upgraded due to upshift in nodal stage had a poor survival (p = 0.002). Newer staging system is easy to use in clinical practice. Around a quarter of the BSCC got upstaged with the introduction of the newer staging system. But it was surprising to note that there were no statistically significant differences in DFS between the tumors of the same composite stages with regard to the two staging systems.

Mucosal Melanomas of the Oral Cavity: A Tertiary Care Centre Experience of Surgically Treated Cases.

Mucosal melanoma of oral cavity (MMO) is a relatively rare tumour comprising of 40% of all head and neck mucosal melanomas. This study assessed the treatment outcomes and factors affecting prognosis in oral cavity mucosal melanomas. The clinical case records of 25 cases of oral cavity mucosal melanomas treated in our institution during 2003-2013 were retrospectively reviewed. Various clinicopathological parameters were taken into consideration and statistical analysis done by Kaplan-Meier method and Cox's proportional hazards model. The most common sites of MMO were upper alveolus and hard palate (64%) followed by lower alveolus (28%). 57.1% mucosal melanomas of hard palate and upper alveolus had associated metastatic lymph nodes whereas all cases of MMO of lower alveolus had lymph node metastasis. Disease failure at distant sites was higher than that at primary site or lymph nodes. The most common site of distant metastases was brain. The 5-year OS for treated cases was 23.8% and among subsites, MMO of hard palate and upper alveolus had the highest survival. Metastasis to lymph nodes and bone infiltration by tumour significantly decreased the survival. Recurrence at primary site had the worst prognosis. MMO with lymph nodal involvement and bone erosion had poor prognosis. Due to high chances of lymph node metastases and disease recurrence in lymph nodes following treatment, it is essential to do an elective neck dissection for all cases of MMO. Disease failure at primary site was an independent predictor of outcome in MMO.

Pattern of Post-Operative Infections Among Oral Cavity Cancer Patients in a Tertiary Care Cancer Centre: A Prospective Study.

Surgical site infections (SSIs) constitute a major problem among patients who undergo surgery for oral cancer and remain a substantial cause of morbidity, prolonged hospitalization and death. The aim of this study was to assess the microbial spectrum of post-operative wound infections and to assess the outcome of appropriate antibiotic usage in patients who underwent surgery for oral cancer. This was a prospective observational study done in a tertiary care cancer hospital. Patients who underwent surgery for cancers of the oral cavity during the period January 2014 to December 2016 were included in the study. The spectrum of infections, risk factors, microbial profile, antibiotic susceptibility pattern, treatment given and outcome were assessed. A total of 1431 patients who underwent surgery for cancers of the oral cavity during the study period were followed up. SSIs were noticed in 118 (8%) post-operative cases. This included 55 (76.4%) incisional SSIs and 17 (23.6%) organ/space SSIs. Culture of the surgical site in 72 infected patients yielded a total of 122 isolates. Thirty patients (41.6%) had polymicrobial infections. Gram-negative bacterial isolates (70.5%) outnumbered gram-positive bacterial isolates (27%). Majority of the patients (48 patients-66.6%) were in stage IV disease. Successful management of patients with bacterial infections depends on early identification of bacterial pathogens and selection of an effective antibiotic against the organism. Judicial use of antibiotics is also very essential to prevent the development of drug resistance.

Correlation of TIRADS and Bethesda Scoring Systems with Final Histopathology of Thyroid Nodules - An Institutional Experience.

Fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) reduces the number of unnecessary thyroid surgeries for patients with benign nodules and appropriately triages patients with thyroid cancer to appropriate treatment. This was a observational study done on cases presenting with clinical suspicion of thyroid malignancy which underwent ultrasonography followed by FNAC of thyroid nodule. Ultrasonographic characterization of nodules was based on Thyroid Imaging Reporting and Data System (TIRADS) and cytology reporting was based on Bethesda system. All recruited patients underwent thyroidectomy. Pre-operative cytology and ultrasonography features were compared with final histopathology report. In our study, Bethesda system of cytology reporting for thyroid nodules had a better sensitivity, specificity and diagnostic accuracy than TIRADS system of ultrasound reporting. Bethesda system in FNAC had a larger area under the ROC curve (0.91) as compared to ultrasound TIRADS (0.70). Malignancy rate of TIRADS 5 nodules was 97.1% with significant p value (0.022). 100% of Bethesda VI lesions were malignant according to final histopathology report. Ultrasound TIRADS could pre-operatively predict malignancy in 63.6% of indeterminate thyroid nodules which were malignant according to post-operative histopathology. The overall concordance of ultrasound TIRADS, Bethesda system and histopathology was 69.8%. Higher TIRADS and Bethesda scoring among thyroid nodules was associated with increased risk of malignancy. US TIRADS is a good predictor of malignancy in indeterminate thyroid nodules.

A Prospective Observational Study to Determine the Correlation of Clinical, Ultrasonography, and Pathological Examination of Cervical Lymph Nodal Staging in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma.

Oral cancer is one of the most common cancers in our population. These cancers are drained by the nodes located in the cervical region which are easily accessible for clinical examination. However, these cervical nodes may also be enlarged due to various other nonmalignant causes. Hence, accuracy of clinical examination and ultrasound screening for cervical lymph nodes is invaluable. The aims of this study are (1) to correlate the clinical, radiological, and pathological results of cervical lymph nodes in patients with oral malignancy and (2) to calculate the accuracy of clinical and radiological methods in detecting malignant cervical lymph nodes. A prospective observational study was undertaken from January 2016 to December 2016 amounting to a total of 76 patients. All patients diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity and having a palpable neck node(s), who were planned for surgery were included. Clinical examination, ultrasonographic (USG) screening of the neck, and the final histopathology reports were noted. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV) for radiological screening by ultrasound were 90.5%, 90.9%, 79.2%, and 96.2%, respectively, and that for clinical examination were 61.9%, 69.1%, 43.3%, and 82.6%, respectively. Area under the curve (AUC) for ultrasound screening was 0.907, and the AUC for clinical examination was 0.655. Ultrasonography is a reliable, cost-effective imaging method in the assessment of malignant cervical nodes in patients with oral cancer, which is to be used along with clinical palpation for improving the accuracy of clinical staging and surgical planning preoperatively.

ß-Tubulin Isotype, TUBB4B, Regulates The Maintenance of Cancer Stem Cells.

Recent advancements in cancer research have shown that cancer stem cell (CSC) niche is a crucial factor modulating tumor progression and treatment outcomes. It sustains CSCs by orchestrated regulation of several cytokines, growth factors, and signaling pathways. Although the features defining adult stem cell niches are well-explored, the CSC niche is poorly characterized. Since membrane trafficking proteins have been shown to be essential for the localization of critical proteins supporting CSCs, we investigated the role of TUBB4B, a probable membrane trafficking protein that was found to be overexpressed in the membranes of stem cell enriched cultures, in sustaining CSCs in oral cancer. Here, we show that the knockdown of TUBB4B downregulates the expression of pluripotency markers, depletes ALDH1A1+ population, decreases in vitro sphere formation, and diminishes the tumor initiation potential in vivo. As TUBB4B is not known to have any role in transcriptional regulation nor cell signaling, we suspected that its membrane trafficking function plays a role in constituting a CSC niche. The pattern of its expression in tissue sections, forming a gradient in and around the CSCs, reinforced the notion. Later, we explored its possible cooperation with a signaling protein, Ephrin-B1, the abrogation of which reduces the self-renewal of oral cancer stem cells. Expression and survival analyses based on the TCGA dataset of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) samples indicated that the functional cooperation of TUBB4 and EFNB1 results in a poor prognosis. We also show that TUBB4B and Ephrin-B1 cohabit in the CSC niche. Moreover, depletion of TUBB4B downregulates the membrane expression of Ephrin-B1 and reduces the CSC population. Our results imply that the dynamics of TUBB4B is decisive for the surface localization of proteins, like Ephrin-B1, that sustain CSCs by their concerted signaling.

Neurovascular Complications After Neck Dissection: a Prospective Analysis at a Tertiary Care Centre in South India.

Owing to high incidence of oral cancers in India, neck dissection is the most commonly performed procedure in any head and neck oncology setup. This surgery is particularly prone to various neurovascular complications due to intricate anatomy of neck, but the exact incidence has been studied less especially in Indian subcontinent. A prospective observational study was done on 105 patients of oral cancer who underwent neck dissection at Regional Cancer Centre, Trivandrum, and various short-term and long-term neurovascular complications were recorded. There was high temporary praxia of marginal mandibular and greater auricular nerve of 32.5% and 36.1%, respectively, immediate post-operative period which reduced significantly during 6 months. Eight patients had long-term shoulder abduction difficulty. There were isolated cases of IJV thrombosis and phrenic nerve paralysis. Despite our best intentions, complications arise due to complex anatomy of the neck, but if surgeon remains cognisant of the potential complications, their impact on patients' health, pocket and hospital resources can be minimized.

Island NLF or Island FAMM Flap in Reconstruction of Oral Malignancy Defects?

Free tissue transfer is the reconstructive option of choice in oral defects of onco-resections. Local flaps like nasolabial flap and FAMM flaps need to be in the armamentarium of surgeons to use when need arises. The aim of this study is to assess utility of island FAMM or nasolabial flap in oral reconstruction, in an oncological setting. Patients with oral cancers, irrespective of nodal status, were included in the study. A total of 33 patients were enrolled from Jan 2018 to Feb 2019, of which 2 were discarded intra-operatively. Fifteen had NLF and 16 had FAMM flap reconstruction. Partial flap loss was noted in 2 patients that healed with granulation, secondarily. Island FAMM and island nasolabial flaps are equally good reconstructive options even in an oncological setup, if factors like addictions, socialising capacity of patient and presence of submucosal fibrosis can be ascertained.

A novel reporter construct for screening small molecule inhibitors that specifically target self-renewing cancer cells.

Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are a subset of cancer cells, which possess self-renewal ability, and lead to tumor progression, metastasis, and resistance to therapy. Live detection and isolation of CSCs are important to understand the biology of CSCs as well as to screen drugs that target them. Even though CSCs are detected using surface markers, there is a lot of inconsistencies for that in a given cancer type. At the same time, self-renewal markers like ALDH1A1, OCT4A and SOX2, which are intracellular molecules, are reliable markers for CSCs in different cancers. In the present study, we generated a reporter construct for self-renewing CSCs, based on ALDH1A1 expression. Oral cancer cells harboring ALDH1A1-DsRed2 were used to screen inhibitors that target CSCs. Our results showed that Comb1, a cocktail of inhibitors for EGF and TGF-ß pathways and their intermediates, effectively reduced the DsRed2 population to 34%. Our immunohistochemical analysis on primary oral cancer corroborated the importance of EGF and TGF-ß pathways in sustaining CSCs. Since these two pathways are also critical for the self-renewal and differentiation of normal stem cells, Comb1 might abolish them as well. On analysis of the effect of Comb1 on normal murine bone marrow cells, there was no significant change in the stem cell self-renewal and differentiation potential in the treated group compared to untreated cells. To conclude, we claim that ALDH1A1-DsRed2 is a useful tool to detect CSCs, and Comb1 is effective in targeting CSCs without affecting normal stem cells.

'Doing as little as possible and as much as necessary' - Oncological efficacy of marginal mandibulectomy in resection of oral cavity cancers.

BACKGROUND: In carefully selected oral cavity cancers, marginal mandibulectomy is an adequate procedure which achieves good disease control adhering to the principle of "doing as little as possible and as much as necessary". METHODOLOGY: This was a retrospective study done by reviewing the medical records of all patients who underwent marginal mandibulectomy for resection of oral cavity cancers in our institution during a period of 5 years. Data was collected from medical case records and analyzed. RESULTS: 125 cases underwent marginal mandibulectomy for resection of oral cavity cancers. 88.5% of advanced oral cavity cancers that underwent neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by marginal mandibulectomy are still disease free. The local recurrence rate was 10.4%. Among cases which recurred, 61.5% were in T2 stage of the disease and 30.8% recurred in buccal mucosa. For lesions on the mandible (26/125), the final histopathology showed bone infiltration in only 12% cases and among them only one recurred. Among 88/125 cases where the lesion was abutting mandible even after stretching mucosa, recurrence was noted only in 11.4% with 3-year overall survival of 79.3%. CONCLUSIONS: The low recurrence rate following marginal mandibulectomy in our study shows good locoregional control when performed for a lesion close to or abutting alveolar periosteum. In management of advanced oral cavity cancers, neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by marginal mandibulectomy was effective in achieving significant locoregional control. For superficial lesions on the mandible, marginal mandibulectomy gives adequate margin clearance resulting in long term survival.

Prospective Evaluation of Surgical Outcome After Transoral CO2 Laser Resection of Potentially Malignant and Early Oral Malignancy.

A prospective observational study was done at the Regional Cancer Centre, Thiruvananthapuram, a tertiary referral center for cancer care in India with an aim to assess the surgical outcomes of CO2 laser resection of oral lesions in terms of operative time, blood loss, hospital stay, postoperative pain, time to re-epithelization, pathological margins achieved and the postoperative scar. The excision was performed in 30 patients with a diagnosis of either potentially malignant lesions (leucoplakia, erythroplakia) or early cancers, i.e., carcinoma in situ or T1/T2 squamous cell carcinoma of the anterior oral cavity (tongue, buccal mucosa), adhering to standard oncological principles, and the resultant defect was left for secondary healing.

Surgical Management of Head and Neck Soft Tissue Sarcoma: 11-Year Experience at a Tertiary Care Centre in South India.

Head and neck soft tissue sarcoma (HNSTS) is a rare neoplasm accounting for 1% of all head and neck tumours. Because of rarity and varied biological behaviour among various subtypes, knowledge about these tumours is limited. This study aimed at analysing clinicopathological, recurrence and survival pattern of surgically treated HNSTS. Case records of 28 patients of HNSTS who underwent surgery at the Regional Cancer Centre (RCC), Trivandrum (India) between 2002 and 2012 were analysed retrospectively for demographic profile, clinical features, treatment given, recurrence pattern and outcome. The median age of patients was 37 years (range, 3-79) with male:female ratio of 3:2. Majority of patients presented with painless lump in the neck as the most common subsite affected followed by scalp and face. One patient had nodal disease, while none had distant metastasis at presentation. The most frequent histological subtypes were synovial sarcoma and fibrosarcoma followed by malignant fibrous histiocytoma, angiosarcoma and rhabdomyosarcoma. Majority (78.5%) of patients received adjuvant therapy in the form of radiation, chemotherapy or chemo-radiation. After mean follow-up of 49 months, four patients had died, and six developed local recurrence and four distant metastasis. The overall 5-year survival was 82.7% while 5-year disease-free survival was 55.3%. HNSTS is a rare entity that requires multimodality treatment to achieve optimum locoregional control and survival.

Bilateral Chylothorax Following Neck Dissection: Case Report & Review of Literature.

Bilateral Chylothorax following neck dissection is an extremely rare complication. We report a case of bilateral chylothorax detected after neck dissection for carcinoma of lower alveolus. A 61 year Indian female underwent wide excision with segmental mandibulectomy with comprehensive neck dissection for carcinoma of left lower alveolus clinically staged T4N0. Evaluated for dyspnea in post operative period, she was found to have bilateral chylothorax that was managed conservatively. This case report presents potentially life threatening complication following neck dissection that often responds to non surgical management.