To print: Select File and then Print from your browser's menu --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Title: Nervous Tissue Involvement May Predict Progression of Oral Carcinomas: Presented at AHNS URL: http://www.pslgroup.com/dg/22641A.htm Doctor's Guide July 23, 2008
By Arushi Sinha SAN FRANCISCO -- July 23, 2008 -- Among patients with early-stage squamous cell carcinomas, those with perineural involvement appear to have lower survival rates compared with patients who have no perineural involvement, according to research presented here at the American Head and Neck Society (AHNS) 7th International Conference on Head and Neck Cancer. While it is known that perineural invasion by the carcinoma has a negative impact on prognosis for squamous cell carcinomas in general, there is less information on the impact for early-stage oral cancers. "With perineural invasion, there is a possibility that even very small tumours can be very aggressive," explained Raquel Moysés, MD, Head and Neck Surgery Department, Sao Paulo University Medical School, Sao Paulo, Brazil. The retrospective study, presented in a poster session on July 22, examined the progress of 42 patients diagnosed with early-stage squamous cell carcinoma of the oral tongue or of the floor of the mouth. The tumours were stage I or II with no nodal involvement (N0). There were 16 patients with perineural invasion and 26 patients without. The average follow-up time was 49 months. Study endpoints included clinical and pathological characteristics as well as an analysis of treatment regimens and outcomes data. When compared with those without perineural involvement, patients with perineural invasion were found to have significantly larger tumour diameter (P = .046) and thickness (P = .002). They also had a higher rate of disease-specific death (P = .015) and lower global survival (P = .019), despite having a higher rate of adjuvant radiotherapy. In addition, patients with perineural invasion were more likely to be male (P = .008) and have an increased incidence of tobacco exposure (P = .042). Disease-free survival rates were not different between the 2 groups. Perineural involvement was not a significant predictor of disease-specific death (P = .0275) but did influence global survival rates. Based on these findings, the authors concluded that even despite more aggressive treatment, patients with perineural involvement had lower global survival rates compared with patients who had no perineural invasion. "Depending upon the pathological findings, even small, early-stage tumours can result in higher death rates," summarised Dr. Moysés. The abstract received an award of distinction from the conference committee. [Presentation title: Critical Analysis of the Outcome of Early Stage Tongue and Floor of Mouth SCC With Perineural Invasion. Abstract P626] --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright © 1999 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of P\S\L content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of P\S\L. P\S\L shall not be liable for any errors, omissions or delays in this content or any other content on its sites, newsletters or other publications, nor for any decisions or actions taken in reliance on such content. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This news story was printed from *Doctor's Guide to the Internet* located at http://www.docguide.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Return to News Story Page This site is maintained by webmaster@pslgroup.com Please contact us with any comments, problems or bugs. All contents Copyright (c) 1998 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved.