Prognostic Significance of Pain in Parotid Gland Malignancy

Objectives/Hypothesis To better understand the significance of pain as a predictor of disease severity in parotid gland malignancy. Study Design A retrospective chart review of patients treated for primary parotid gland malignancy at our institution between 1991 and 2020 was performed. Methods Patient records were retrospectively reviewed and relevant clinical parameters were collected. Patients were stratified into low stage (I and II) disease and high stage (III and IV) disease groups to analyze the independent effect of pain at initial presentation on disease recurrence rate and disease‐free survival using Kaplan–Meier survival curves and an independent two‐sample t ‐test. Results Of 154 patients evaluated, there were 69 patients in the low stage group and 80 patients in the high stage group. Thirty‐seven high stage patients presented with pain. High stage patients with pain were significantly more likely to develop disease recurrence than high stage patients without pain (58.5% [22/37] versus 33.3% [13/39], P  = .022). High stage patients with pain also had significantly decreased disease‐free survival time compared to high stage patients without pain ( P  = .027). Conclusion Pain on presentation appears to be a poor prognostic factor for patients with parotid gland malignancy. For patients with demonstrated high stage disease, pain is independently associated with increased risk of recurrence and decreased disease‐free survival time. Level of Evidence 4 Laryngoscope , 131:1503–1508, 2021