OBJECTIVE: To clarify the role of neck dissection following primary radiotherapy for treatment of @entity957 of the base of tongue. DESIGN: Case series. SETTING: Academic, tertiary care medical center. @entity1 OR OTHER @entity1 : A consecutive series of 45 @entity1 with biopsy-proven @entity957 of the base of tongue and cervical @entity3 treated with primary radiotherapy at The University of California, San Francisco, was examined. @entity1 with a prior history of neck irradiation, neck dissection, or @entity135 within 5 years were excluded. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Overall survival and regional control. RESULTS: Of the 45 @entity1 treated with definitive radiotherapy, 25 (56%) achieved a complete response, 13 (29%) achieved a partial response, 4 (9%) were nonresponders, and 3 (7%) did not complete radiotherapy. Two thirds of the complete responders had N2 or N3 disease; 3 had recurrences in the neck, 1 of which was an isolated neck recurrence. Of the 13 partial responders, 5 had isolated persistence of disease, with 4 undergoing neck dissections. The only long-term survivors among the partial responders were those 4 who underwent a neck dissection. Overall survival was 50% at 3 years and 32% at 5 years. Regional control for complete responders was 84% at 5 years. CONCLUSIONS: The low rate of isolated regional recurrence in @entity1 with a complete response to radiotherapy supports the practice of surveillance alone in such @entity1 . @entity1 with less than a complete response appear to benefit from prompt surgical salvage.

Management of cervical @entity3 in advanced XXXX of the base of tongue.

@entity1 :: ('9606', 'Species') :: ['Patients', 'patients', 'PATIENTS', 'PARTICIPANTS'] @entity135 :: ('MESH:D006258', 'Disease') :: ['head and neck cancer'] @entity957 :: ('MESH:D002294', 'Disease') :: ['squamous cell carcinoma'] @entity3 :: ('MESH:D009362', 'Disease') :: ['metastases']
@entity957 :: (MESH:D002294,Disease) :: ['squamous cell carcinoma']
