SURGICAL-TREATMENT FOR PULMONARY METASTASES OF SQUAMOUS-CELL CARCINOMA OF THE HEAD AND NECK

Purpose: As locoregional control of head and neck cancer has improved, distant metastases have become increasingly common problems. Patients and Methods: To determine the role of surgical treatment, we reviewed 32 patients with squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the head and neck w ho underwent thoracotomy for pulmonary metastases. Results: The overal l 5-year survival rate was 32%. The 5-year survival rate of the patien ts with SCC of the oral cavity was significantly poorer than that of t he patients with other primary site (15.4% v 45.2%; P =.01). In the pa tients with single nodule, extant of the tumor was a significant progn ostic factor (P =.007). Mediastinal lymph node involvement (P =.004) a nd pleural invasion (P =.04) also correlated with survival. Conclusion : TNM classification of the primary tumor did not have an impact on su rvival in this study. Further studies of a large series should be perf ormed to determine the indications and modalities of the surgical trea tment for pulmonary metastases of the SCC of head and neck. Copyright (C) 1997 by W.B. Saunders Company.