Chemotherapy of recurrent esthesioneuroblastoma. Case report and review of the literature.

Esthesioneuroblastoma is a rare epithelial tumor of the nasal olfactory mucosa. Its clinical course is characterized by indolent growth and persistent local recurrence and occasional distant metastases despite attempts at cure. Our report documents the response of a patient to a cisplatin-based drug combination and reviews the English-language literature of 25 patients treated with chemotherapy. We conclude that this tumor is sensitive to several different combinations and suggest guidelines for the use of chemotherapy in advanced or metastatic esthesioneuroblastoma.