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Intensity‐modulated radiotherapy for elderly patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma
Author(s) -
Cao Caineng,
Hu Qiaoying,
Chen Xiaozhong
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
head and neck
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.012
H-Index - 127
eISSN - 1097-0347
pISSN - 1043-3074
DOI - 10.1002/hed.25016
Subject(s) - nasopharyngeal carcinoma , medicine , comorbidity , radiation therapy , oncology , distant metastasis , nasopharyngeal cancer , overall survival , cancer , carcinoma , metastasis
Background The purpose of this study was to evaluate the clinical outcomes and patterns of failure after intensity‐modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) for elderly patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). Methods Fifty‐two patients treated with IMRT were eligible for study inclusion. Comorbidity was rated using the Adult Comorbidity Evaluation‐27 (ACE‐27) system. Results Twenty‐six patients (50.0%) had an ACE‐27 score of 1; and 6 (11.5%) had an ACE‐27 score of 2. Eleven patients had died and 5 (45.5%) of them died of NPC. Two patients had developed local recurrence only, 1 had developed regional recurrence only, and 7 had developed distant metastasis only. The locoregional failure‐free survival, distant failure‐free survival, cancer‐specific survival (CSS), and overall survival (OS) rates at 5 years were 92.6%, 83.7%, 84.9%, and 69.4%, respectively. Conclusion The results of treating elderly patients with NPC by IMRT were excellent. Distant metastasis remains the most difficult treatment challenge for elderly patients with NPC.