Primary oat-cell carcinoma of head and neck.

Summary--A case of primary oat-cell carcinoma of the larynx in a 68-year-old white female is described, bringing to a total of three the reported cases in the world literature. The tumor is highly malignant and notorious for the speed with which it metastasizes. Treatment should be aggressive from the beginning. We believe that even for a localized tumor of this kind, a minimal procedure should be widefield laryngectomy with elective radical neck dissection even if clinically, nodes are not palpable. Since the tumor is highly radiosensitive, radiotherapy should be used postoperatively.