MALIGNANT-TUMORS OF THE NASAL CAVITY - REVIEW OF A 60-CASE SERIES

Sixty cases of primary malignant tumor of the nasal cavity treated in our hospital between 1962 and 1993 were reviewed. Males were affected 2.8 times more frequently than females. The age at the first consultat ion ranged from 11 to 92 years, with a mean of 55.1 years. The peak di stribution was seen in the 616 decade. Twenty-six cases were epithelia l malignancies (squamous cell carcinoma 15; adenocarcinoma 3; adenoid cystic carcinoma 3; undifferentiated carcinoma 3; mucoepidermoid carci noma 1; malignant mixed tumor 1), while 34 cases were non-epithelial m alignancies (malignant melanoma 14; malignant lymphoma 14; plasmacytom a 3; olfactory neuroblastoma 2; rhabdomyosarcoma 1). The most common s ymptom on presentation was nasal obstruction (66.7%), followed by epis taxis (55.0%). The first recurrence was local in 19 patients, whereas cervical lymph node metastasis occurred in three patients, bone metast asis in two, intraperitoneal metastasis in two, and brain metastasis i n one. The overall five-year cumulative survival rate was 48.0%. The f ive-year survival rates for squamous cell carcinoma, malignant melanom a, and malignant lymphoma were 57.0%, 31.0%, and 40.0%, respectively.