[The treatment of carcinoma of the tongue (author's transl)].

In the past 18 years 34 patients (21 males and 13 females) with carcinoma of the tongue were treated in the author's clinic. Patients with T1N0 lesions were treated satisfactorily only with irradiation. Patients with advanced disease, such as T2-T4 with metastases, were classified into 2 groups. One group was treated surgically (hemiglosectomy and radical neck dissection) and postoperative irradiation (about 6000 rads). The other group was treated with preoperative irradiation (about 4000 rads) and the same operation as the first groups. The results are significantly different. In the first group, 15 patients out of 17 died from local or cervical recurrences, whilst in the latter group 12 patients of 14 are in good health. As two patients died from unknown disease the 5 year survival of this group is 100%.