Radiotherapy of early tongue cancer in patients less than 40 years old

Purpose: To evaluate the results of treatment for early mobile tongue cance r in patients less than 40 years. Methods and Materials: Between January 1967 and September 1992, 70 patients less than 40 years old (young age group) with early tongue cancer (T1-2N0M 0) were treated with low-dose-rate (LDR) interstitial radiotherapy at the O saka University Hospital (OUH). All patients had a minimum 2-year follow-up (median: 13 years). External radiotherapy (median: 30 Gy) was combined in 25 cases. The treatment results were compared with those for two older age groups (middle age: 40-64 years old; old age: 65 years old or more). Results: The 5-year probability of cause-specific survival (CSS) rate for t he young age group was 80%, which was not significantly different from the two older groups: 81% for middle age and 71% for old age. However, male pat ients of young age showed significantly worse rates than those of middle an d old age (p = 0.02). The 5-year local control rate for the young age group was 78%. It was not significantly different from the two older groups: 81% for middle age and 70% for old age. The incidence of regional lymph node m etastasis was 32% for T1, 48% for T2, 56% for males, and 24% for females. T he regional failure rate of young males was significantly higher than those of the two older groups: 32% for middle and 22% for old age (p = 0.001). Conclusion: The overall treatment results for patients with early tongue ca ncer less than 30 years old were not worse than those of older age groups. However, male gender was a risk factor for lymph node metastasis and CSS. ( C) 1999 Elsevier Science Inc.