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Survival outcomes of perineural spread in head and neck cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma
Author(s) -
Phung Daniel,
Ahmadi Navid,
Gupta Ruta,
Clark Jonathan R.,
Wykes James,
Ch'ng Sydney,
Elliott Michael S.,
Palme Carsten E.,
Shan Kerwin,
Wu Raymond,
Lee Jenny H.,
Low TsuHui Hubert
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
anz journal of surgery
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.426
H-Index - 70
eISSN - 1445-2197
pISSN - 1445-1433
DOI - 10.1111/ans.17908
Subject(s) - medicine , radiation therapy , perineural invasion , surgery , head and neck cancer , adjuvant radiotherapy , demographics , head and neck , retrospective cohort study , surgical margin , head and neck squamous cell carcinoma , cancer , demography , sociology
Aim To present an institution's experience and survival outcomes for patients with head and neck cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (HNcSCC) and perineural spread (PNS). Method Retrospective study of patients with HNcSCC and PNS treated between January 2010 and August 2020 from the Sydney Head and Neck Cancer Institute database, Sydney, Australia; a high‐volume, tertiary, academic head and neck centre. Patient demographics, primary site, involved cranial nerves, treatment modality, loco‐regional failure and survival data were obtained. Results Forty‐five patients were identified, of which 32 patients were male (71%). Mean age at diagnosis was 68.7 years (range 43–90). Median follow‐up was 16.1 months (range 1–107). The trigeminal nerve was most frequently involved ( n = 30, 66.6%) followed by facial nerve ( n = 13, 28.9%). Most patients underwent surgery followed by radiotherapy ( n = 33, 73%) and eight received definitive radiotherapy. The median overall survival (OS) was 4.5 years (95% CI 3.71–5.38), median disease‐specific survival 5.1 years (95% CI 4.21–5.97) and median disease‐free survival (DFS) was 1.7 years (95% CI 1.11–2.22). The estimated 5‐year OS and DFS were 45% and 25%, respectively. Patients treated with surgery and adjuvant radiotherapy with a clear proximal nerve margin had favourable DFS ( P = 0.035) and trended towards better OS ( P = 0.134) compared with patients with an involved nerve margin. Patients treated surgically with involved proximal nerve margins had similar outcomes compared with patients with treated definitive radiotherapy (HR 0.80, 95% CI 0.29–2.22, P = 0.664). Conclusion The likelihood of achieving a clear proximal nerve margin should be a strong consideration in the selection of appropriate patients for primary surgery