PROLONGED SURVIVAL IN A NASOPHARYNGEAL CARCINOMA PATIENT WITH MULTIPLE METASTASES - A CASE-REPORT AND REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma is a common cancer in South East Asia, In the early stages, radiotherapy alone may achieve sustained control, but o nce metastasis occurs, it becomes an incurable disease with limited su rvival time, We report a case of nasopharyngeal carcinoma, initial sta ge T4NOMO, diagnosed in 1985 in a patient aged 36 years who received 7 0 Gy radiotherapy to the head and neck region, In 1988, relapse occurr ed with multiple lung metastases. The patient received many chemothera py regimens with a very good response, including near complete remissi on with the first treatment regimen of cisplatin, 5-fluorouracil and l eucovorin for lung metastases, and with the fifth chemotherapy regimen of ifosfamide as a single agent, After if osf amide treatment, there was residual fibrotic change in the lung and complete disappearance, l asting for almost a year, of the liver and bone lesions, The patient e ventually died in July 1995 due to progressive disease. Prolonged surv ival after mainly thoracic metastasis is possible in patients with nas opharyngeal carcinoma, especially if the tumor is chemo-responsive.