Schipper J, Gellrich N C, Marangos N, Maier W
Universitäts-Hals-Nasen-Ohren-Klinik Freiburg.
Laryngorhinootologie. 1999 Oct;78(10):561-5. doi: 10.1055/s-1999-8759.
The wait-and-see policy in patients with a N0 neck stage is not common.
One hundred twenty-one patients with a pT1 or pT2 carcinoma of the upper aerodigestive tract and a N0 neck stage in ultrasound studies underwent transoral laser microsurgery without neck dissection or radiation therapy. In these patients the probability of survival and local or regionals recurrence were analyzed in a follow-up period of 18 to 36 months.
Thirty patients in whom cervical lymph nodes were detected in ultrasound studies, underwent a curative neck dissection procedure. In 8 of these 30 patients, lymph node metastases were histologically demonstrated, and 6 patients showed a local recurrence. The probability of survival was 1.0 and the probability of being free of local or regional recurrence was between 0.95 and 0.6 depending on the tumor location.
A wait-and-see policy will not necessarily alter the prognosis, which depends on the location of the tumor. Ultrasound follow-up studies should be performed at regular intervals.
