Laryngectomees' views on laryngeal transplantation

Loss of-a functional larynx has marked implications for quality of life tha t remain after both laryngectomy and its alternatives. One solution is lary ngeal transplantation. We hypothesised that laryngeal transplantation would be unacceptable to a population of laryngectomees, and that such a lack of acceptability would not be affected by age, sex or time elapsed since oper ation. In addition, we sought the views of laryngectomees on priorities for research. A questionnaire was developed and mailed to 1000 members of lary ngectomee clubs. A total of 372 of 404 responses were suitable for analysis . Seventy-five percent of the respondents said they would accept a transpla nt under ideal conditions; the number dropped to 58.9 % when a stoma was to be retained. Fifty percent would accept a graft even if it did not result in a normal voice. A positive response was more likely in younger responden ts (P < 0.001 all questions; linear regression). Some 47.3 % of respondents thought research money could be better spent on other projects, and this r esponse was commoner in older respondents (P = 0.0001). Highest priorities for research into laryngeal cancer were development of new treatments (63.2 %), prevention (60.2 %) and optimisation of quality of life (57 %). In sho rt, there appears to be a surprisingly high level of support for laryngeal transplantation amongst those who have had a laryngectomy.