Factors affecting survival in maxillary sinus cancer.

PURPOSE

The study goal was to determine survival parameters and clinical factors influencing survival for maxillary sinus malignancies.

METHODS

Cases of maxillary sinus malignancy for the time period 1988 to 1998 were extracted from the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results database. Cases with distant metastatic disease at presentation were excluded. Clinical information, including tumor histology, grade and stage, and extent of surgery and radiation therapy, were determined. Kaplan-Meier survival and Cox proportional hazards analyses were conducted to determine the influence of these factors on overall survival.

RESULTS

The study sample was composed of 650 patients with maxillary sinus cancer (mean age, 64 years; male-to-female ratio, 3:2). The most common histology was squamous cell carcinoma (61.7%), followed by adenoid cystic carcinoma (9.8%). The overall mean (median) survival was 52 months (25 months), and 77.5% and 7.4% of patients presented with advanced (T3/T4) disease or cervical metastasis, respectively. Radiation therapy was administered in 441 patients (67.9%) and significantly improved survival mainly for those with T4 lesions. On multivariate analysis, increasing age, T stage, N stage, and tumor grade independently predicted poorer survival, whereas gender did not. Adenoid cystic carcinoma exhibited a significantly improved overall survival (P <.001).

CONCLUSIONS

Survival for patients with maxillary sinus cancer is determined not only by TNM staging but also by tumor histology and grade. TNM staging effectively stratifies patients according to survival. Radiation therapy significantly improves survival for those with T4 lesions.