Immediate resection of positive margins improves local control in oral tongue cancer.

OBJECTIVES: This study investigates the impact of immediate resection of positive margins on local control of oral tongue cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We analyzed 273 consecutive oral tongue cancers resected from 2013 to 2018. Additional resection was performed in cases during the initial operation based on surgeon inspection of the specimen and/or frozen margins. Positive margins were defined as invasive carcinoma/high-grade dysplasia < 1 mm from the inked edge. Patients were grouped as follows: negative margin (Group 1); positive margin with immediate additional tissue resection (Group 2); and positive margin without additional tissue resection (Group 3). RESULTS: Overall, the rate of local recurrence was 7.7 % (21/273), and the rate of positive main specimen margin was 17.9 %. Of these patients, 38.8 % (19/49) underwent immediate additional resection of the presumed positive margin. Group 3 had higher local recurrence rates than Group 1 after adjustment for T-stage (aHR 2.8 [95 % CI 1.0-7.7], p = 0.04). Group 2 had similar rates of local recurrence (aHR 0.45 [95 % CI 0.06-3.6], p = 0.45). Three year local recurrence free survival for Groups 1, 2, and 3 were 91 %, 92 % and 73 %, respectively. Compared to the main specimen margin, sensitivity of intraoperative frozen tumor bed margins was 17.4 %, and specificity was 95 %. CONCLUSION: In patients with positive main specimen margins, anticipation and detection in real-time with immediate additional tissue resection reduced local recurrence to rates similar to those with negative main specimen margins. These findings support the use of technology to provide real-time intraoperative margin data and guide additional resection for improved local control.

High surgical volume is associated with improved survival in head and neck cancer.

OBJECTIVES: Examine the relationship between hospital volume and overall mortality in a surgical cohort of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) patients. MATERIALS & METHODS: A retrospective review of the NCDB was completed for adults with previously untreated HNSCC diagnosed between 2004 and 2016. Mean annual hospital volume was calculated using the number of head and neck cancer cases treated at a given facility divided by the number of years the facility reported to the NCDB. Facilities were separated into three categories based on their volume percentile, informed by inflection points from a natural cubic spline: Hospital Group 1 (<50%); Hospital Group 2 (50-90%); Hospital Group 3 (90%+). Cox proportional hazard models were used to examine the association between volume percentiles (continuous or categorical) with patient overall survival, adjusting for important patient and facility variables known to impact survival. RESULTS: Risk of death decreased by 2.97% for every 10% increase in facility percentile after adjusting for other risk factors. Patients treated at facilities in Hospital Group 1 had a 23.1% increase in risk of mortality (HR 1.231 [95% CI 1.12-1.35]) relative those at facilities in Hospital Group 3. No significant difference in mortality risk was found between Hospital Group 2 versus Hospital Group 3 (HR 1.031 [95% CI 0.97-1.10]). CONCLUSIONS: Survival of HNSCC patients is significantly improved when treated at facilities >50th percentile in annual hospital volume. This may support the regionalization of care to high volume head and neck centers with comprehensive facilities and supportive services to maximize patient outcomes.

Postoperative Radiation Therapy in Oral Cavity Verrucous Carcinoma.

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS: We investigate the clinicopathologic and treatment factors associated with the use of postoperative radiation therapy (PORT) and its effect on overall survival (OS) for patients with oral cavity verrucous carcinoma (VC). STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study of the National Cancer Database (NCDB) from 2006 to 2015 was performed. Multivariable logistic regression was used to identify independent predictive factors associated with the use of PORT. Cox Regression survival and propensity score analyses were used to evaluate the effect of PORT on mortality. RESULTS: A total of 356 adult patients with primary oral cavity VC who underwent definitive surgical resection were identified. A total of 10.7% of patients underwent definitive surgical resection followed by PORT. Variables associated with PORT included distance to the hospital per 10 miles (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 0.81 [95% confidence interval (CI), 0.70-0.95]) and stage III-IV disease (aOR, 12.13 and 23.92, respectively). Multivariable Cox regression survival analysis indicated no evidence of survival benefit in patients undergoing PORT compared to surgery alone (adjusted hazard ratio 1.50 [0.74-3.05], P = .23). Propensity score analysis also showed no OS benefit with the use of PORT (P = .41). CONCLUSIONS: Variables associated with the use of PORT on multivariable analysis included closer distance to hospital and stage III-IV disease. No clear survival benefit with PORT was identified on either multivariable survival analysis or propensity score analysis. These results suggest that surgery alone with negative margins may be the optimal treatment for patients with oral cavity VC. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 4 Laryngoscope, 132:1953-1961, 2022.

Stage Migration and Survival Trends in Laryngeal Cancer.

BACKGROUND: During the last two decades, significant advancements in the treatment of laryngeal cancer have occurred. Although survival of head and neck cancer patients has improved over time, the temporal trend of laryngeal cancer survival is an area of controversy. METHODS: From 2004 to 2016, 77,527 patients who had laryngeal cancer treated with curative intent in the United States were identified in the National Cancer Database. Relative and observed survival rates were assessed for temporal trends. Multinomial logistic regression investigated the relationship between American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) stage and increasing calendar year. RESULTS: No significant improvement in 2- or 5-year observed survival (OS) or relative survival (RS) was observed. The 5-year RS ranged from 61.72 to 63.97%, and the 5-year OS ranged from 54.26 to 56.52%. With each increasing year, the proportion of stage 4 disease increased, with risk for stage 4 disease at the time of diagnosis increasing 2.2% annually (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 1.022; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.017-1.028; p < 0.001). This increase was driven by a 4.7% yearly increase in N2 disease (aOR, 1.047; 95% CI, 1.041-1.053; p < 0.001), with an annual 1.2% increase in T3 disease (aOR, 1.012; 95% CI, 1.007-1.018; p < 0.001) and a 1.2% increase in T4 disease (aOR, 1.012; 95% CI, 1.005-1.018; p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Despite advances in the field, laryngeal cancer survival in the United States is not improving over time. This may be due to an increase in the proportion of stage 4 disease, driven primarily by increasing nodal disease. To achieve survival improvement commensurate with scientific and technologic advances, efforts should be made to diagnose and treat laryngeal cancer at earlier stages to prevent further stage migration.

Time to Surgery and Survival in Head and Neck Cancer.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has required triage and delays in surgical care throughout the world. The impact of these surgical delays on survival for patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) remains unknown. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study of 37 730 patients in the National Cancer Database with HNSCC who underwent primary surgical management from 2004 to 2016 was performed. Uni- and multivariate analyses were used to identify predictors of overall survival. Bootstrapping methods were used to identify optimal time-to-surgery (TTS) thresholds at which overall survival differences were greatest. Cox proportional hazard models with or without restricted cubic splines were used to determine the association between TTS and survival. RESULTS: The study identified TTS as an independent predictor of overall survival (OS). Bootstrapping the data to dichotomize the cohort identified the largest rise in hazard ratio (HR) at day 67, which was used as the optimal TTS cut-point in survival analysis. The patients who underwent surgical treatment longer than 67 days after diagnosis had a significantly increased risk of death (HR, 1.189; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.122-1.261; P < 0.0001). For every 30-day delay in TTS, the hazard of death increased by 4.6%. Subsite analysis showed that the oropharynx subsite was most affected by surgical delays, followed by the oral cavity. CONCLUSIONS: Increasing TTS is an independent predictor of survival for patients with HNSCC and should be performed within 67 days after diagnosis to achieve optimal survival outcomes.