Modified submental platysmal adipomyofascial flap: is it a reliable alternate reconstructive option for small- to mid-sized defects especially in male patients with oral/oropharyngeal cancer?

PURPOSE: To introduce modified submental platysmal adipomyofascial flap as a new and viable hairless locoregional option for reconstruction of small- to mid-sized defects after ablative surgery in oral/oropharyngeal cancer patients keeping in mind the present pandemic situation. METHODS: An observational retrospective study was conducted using modified submental platysmal adipomyofascial flap as a locoregional reconstructive option for both intraoral and oropharyngeal defects in early-stage oral/oropharyngeal cancer patients, from Jan 2016 to May 2020 in a tertiary care hospital. All patients in this study were male and the overall flap outcome was evaluated with post-operative follow-up. RESULTS: Out of 18 patients, in 4 patients modified submental platysmal adipomyofascial flap was used as a combination of flaps for reconstruction. Six patients (33.33%) underwent adjuvant radiation therapy/radiation chemotherapy. The long-term functions (speech and swallowing) and cosmetic outcomes were good in the majority of the patients. One patient (5.55%) had pinhole oroantral fistula. No patient had any major flap failure. CONCLUSION: Modified submental platysmal adipomyofascial flap can be considered as a good alternative in male patients for reconstruction of small- to mid-sized oral cavity/oropharyngeal defects post-resection, especially during the prevailing pandemic crisis. It is an oncologically safe procedure with the major advantage of providing a hairless flap for oral cavity, tonsillar and BOT resection defects with lesser donor site morbidity.

Utility and relevance of modified lateral trapezius myocutaneous flap as a locoregional reconstructive option for medium-sized ablative defects in head and neck cancer-our experience.

PURPOSE: Lateral trapezius myocutaneous (LTMC) flap has been used less frequently for defects pertaining to head and neck cancer ablative surgical defects. This study is to assess the utility of LTMC flap with a new modification of the flap design. METHODS: This is a retrospective study using LTMC flap with modifications as a reconstructive option for intraoral & extraoral skin defects in head and neck cancer patients following ablative surgery, from August 2014 to October 2019 in a tertiary care hospital. The original technique of LTMC flap was modified for better results and outcomes. RESULTS: Thirty-five patients underwent lateral trapezius flap reconstruction for ablative defects of oral cavity, laryngopharynx, neck and parotid. Twenty-three patients (65.71%) underwent adjuvant radiation/radiation-chemotherapy while one patient defaulted. Two patients (5.71%) had major flap failure. After the loss of flap in these patients, the operative technique was further modified for better results. However, the disadvantage of using this flap is shoulder disability. Nonetheless in the present study, the disability was reduced after modifying the operating technique by preserving the spinal accessory nerve. CONCLUSION: The present study demonstrated minimal functional loss, low morbidity with satisfactory results, thus also reducing treatment cost. Thus, LTMC is a reliable reconstructive option in head and neck cancer patients for medium-sized defects.

Pitcher pot neourethral modification of ileal orthotopic neobladder achieves satisfactory long-term functional and quality of life outcomes with low clean intermittent self-catheterization rate.

Objective: To describe a decade of our experience with a neo-urethral modification of ileal orthotopic neobladder (pitcher pot ONB). Multiple investigators have reported similar modifications. However, long-term longitudinal functional and quality of life (QOL) outcomes are lacking. Methods: Prospectively maintained hospital registry for 238 ONB patients comprising a mix of open and robotic surgery cohorts from 2007 to 2017, and minimum of 2 years of follow-up was retrospectively queried. QOL was evaluated using Bladder Cancer Index (BCI). Longitudinal trends of QOL domain parameters were analysed. List of perioperative variables that have a biologically plausible association with continence, potency, and post-operative BCI QOL sexual, urinary, and bowel domain scores was drawn. Variables included surgery type, Body Mass Index (BMI), T and N stage, neurovascular bundle (NVB) sparing, age, and related pre-operative BCI QOL domain score. Prognostic associations were analysed using multivariable Cox proportional hazard models and multilevel mixed-effects modeling. Results: The study comprised 80 and 158 patients who underwent open and robotic sandwich technique cohorts, respectively. Open surgery was associated with significantly higher "any" complication (40% vs 27%, P-value .050) and "major" complication rate (15% vs 11%, P-value .048). All patients developed a bladder capacity >400 cc with negligible post-void residual urine, and all but one patient achieved spontaneous voiding by the end of study period (<1% clean intermittent self-catheterization [CISC] rate). By 15 months, QOL for all three domains had recovered to reach a plateau. About 45% of patients achieved potency, and the median time to achieve day and night time continence was 9 and 12 months respectively. Lower age and NVBs spared during surgery were found to be significantly associated with the earlier achievement of potency, day and night time continence, as well as better urinary and sexual summary QOL scores. Conclusions: Pitcher pot neobladder achieves satisfactory long-term functional and QOL outcomes with negligible CISC rate. Results were superior with incremental nerves spared during surgery.

Infrahyoid flap revisited - A head and neck surgical perspective in the Indian setting.

PURPOSE: In India, head and neck cancer contributes to about 35% of all malignancies. Among head and neck squamous cell cancers, buccal mucosa and tongue are the most common subsites. Reconstruction of defects after resection of primary in these subsites with acceptable cosmetic and functional outcomes remains a challenging task. In the era of free flaps, many pedicled flaps are being overlooked. Infrahyoid flap (IHF) is one among them. This study discusses the feasibility of IHF in reconstruction of small and medium-sized defects in subsites of the oral cavity. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study is a retrospective analysis of 23 patients who underwent IHF and reconstruction after excision of primary in a case of oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma from January 2010 till November 2017 with a median follow-up of 15 months. Patients who were diagnosed as a case of squamous cell carcinoma in oral cavity subsites (T1-T3 and N0/N1-N2) and in whom the anticipated defect size was small to medium were included. The evaluation was then done based on the possibility to reach recipient site, vitality after transposition, definitive integration, and clinical outcome. RESULTS: Out of 23 patients, 5 patients had flap-related complications of which 1 patient had total skin paddle necrosis and 4 patients had partial skin paddle necrosis at distal end. However, no patient developed oro-cutaneous fistula or required corrective surgery. The maximum flap dimension was 9 × 4 cm and average flap dimension was 6 × 4 cm. The postoperative outcome of all patients remained uneventful. CONCLUSION: The infrahyoid myocutaneous flap is a reliable and convenient flap which can be used as a good alternative for free flaps in small and medium-sized defects of the oral cavity.

Adjuvant radiation compares favorably to chemotherapy in patients with carcinoma penis and nodal positivity restricted to groin.

OBJECTIVES: To compare overall survival (OS) between adjuvant radiation, chemotherapy and chemoradiation (CCRT) postsurgery for node-positive patients with carcinoma penis. METHODS: Prospectively maintained registry for 45 patients receiving adjuvant treatment following lymph node dissection from 2011 to 2017, having minimum 6 months follow-up and more than 2 positive inguinal nodes was analyzed. Patients without pelvic nodal positivity (n= 32) were treated by radiotherapy (RT) (n = 25) or chemotherapy (n = 7); CCRT (n = 6) or chemotherapy (n = 7) was used in patients with positive pelvic nodes (n = 13). Data was collected for age, comorbidities, body mass index, tobacco exposure, treatment modality, tumor grade, pathological T and N stage, and extra-nodal extension. OS was compared between different treatment modalities stratifying patients with and without pelvic nodal positivity. Multivariate cox proportional hazard analysis was used to narrow down remaining variables and Inverse Probability Treatment Weights modeling was used to determine average treatment effect. RESULTS: About 12 of 14 patients in the chemotherapy group received both cisplatin and paclitaxel. Pathological T stage, N stage and extra-nodal extension had significant association with OS on multivariate analysis. Among patients with nodal positivity restricted to groin the estimated average OS when all patients received adjuvant RT was 1,438 days (95% confidence interval [CI] 1,256-1,619 days, Pvalue <0.0001). The estimated average OS if all patients received chemotherapy was lower by 1,007 days (95% CI 810-1,202 days, P value <0.0001). Among patients with positive pelvic nodes the estimated average OS when all patients received adjuvant CCRT was 467 days (95% CI 368-566 days, P value <0.0001). The estimated average OS difference if all patients received chemotherapy was 17 days (95% CI -144 to 178 days, Pvalue 0.21). CONCLUSION: In patients with nodal positivity limited to groin, adjuvant RT proved superior to chemotherapy. Among patients with pelvic nodal positivity, CCRT offers no significant OS advantage over combination chemotherapy.