Treatment Selection and Technique: Vocal Cord Carcinoma
Selection of Treatment Modality
In treating vocal cord carcinoma, the goal is cure with the best functional result and the least risk of a serious complication. Patients may be considered to be in an early group if the chance of cure with larynx preservation is high, they are in a moderately advanced group if the likelihood of local control is 60% to 70% but the chance of cure is still good, and they are in an advanced group if the chance of cure is moderate and the likelihood of laryngeal preservation is relatively low. The early group may be treated initially by radiation therapy or, in selected cases, by partial laryngectomy. The moderately advanced group may be treated with either irradiation with laryngectomy reserved for relapse or by total laryngectomy with or without adjuvant postoperative irradiation. The obvious advantage of the former strategy, which we use at the University of Florida, is that there is a fairly good chance that the larynx will be preserved.
Although some patients may be rehabilitated with a tracheoesophageal puncture after laryngectomy, only about 20% of patients use this device long term and the majority use an electric larynx (62).
The advanced group is treated with total laryngectomy and neck dissection with or without adjuvant radiation therapy or by radiation therapy and adjuvant chemotherapy (68).
Data suggest that if patients whose tumors show a partial or complete response to two to three cycles of neoadjuvant chemotherapy are then given high-dose radiation therapy, the cure rates are comparable with those obtained with initial total laryngectomy (16).
Another less expensive and less toxic method to select patients likely to be cured by radiation therapy alone is to calculate the primary tumor volume on
pretreatment CT or MRI. Data indicate that primary tumor volume is inversely related to the probability of local control after irradiation (61,64).
Recent data indicate that whereas induction chemotherapy probably does not improve the likelihood of locoregional control and survival, concomitant chemotherapy and irradiation results in an improved possibility of cure compared with irradiation alone (23,68,90).
There is a subset of patients with high volume, unfavorable, advanced cancers who may be cured by chemoradiation but have a useless larynx and permanent tracheostomy and/or gastrostomy (61).
These patients are best treated with a total laryngectomy, neck dissection, and postoperative irradiation.
Carcinoma in Situ
Lesions diagnosed as carcinoma in situ may sometimes be controlled by stripping the cord. However, it is difficult to exclude the possibility of microinvasion on these specimens. Recurrence is frequent, and the cord may become thickened and the voice hoarse with repeated stripping. Localized carcinoma in situ can also be excised using the CO2 laser.
Early radiation therapy for carcinoma in situ often means a better chance of preserving a good voice, especially as many patients with this diagnosis eventually receive this treatment (28).
Many patients with a diagnosis of carcinoma in situ have obvious lesions that probably contain invasive carcinoma. We have often proceeded with radiation therapy rather than put the patient through a repeated biopsy procedure.
Early Vocal Cord Carcinoma
In most centers, irradiation is the initial treatment prescribed for T1 and T2 lesions, with surgery reserved for salvage after radiation therapy failure (60,71).
Although hemilaryngectomy or cordectomy produces comparable cure rates for selected T1 and T2 vocal cord lesions, irradiation is generally preferred (71,79).
Supracricoid laryngectomy, as reported by Laccourreye et al. (47) is a procedure designed to remove moderate-sized cancers involving the supraglottic and glottic larynx. The larynx may be removed with preservation of the cricoid and the arytenoid with its neurovascular innervation, the defect is closed by approximating the base of the tongue to the remaining larynx. The oncologic and functional results of this procedure in selected patients are reported to be excellent.
Transoral laser excision also may provide high cure rates for select patients with small, well-defined lesions limited to the midthird of one true cord (58,103).
A small subset of transoral laser surgeons, notably Professor Steiner, use this technique successfully in moderately advanced cancers (71).
The major advantage of irradiation compared with partial laryngectomy is better quality of the voice. Partial laryngectomy finds its major use as salvage surgery in suitable cases after irradiation failure. Even if the patient has a local recurrence after salvage partial laryngectomy, there is a third chance with total laryngectomy, which may still be successful.
Verrucous lesions have the reputation of being unresponsive to radiation therapy and, in some instances, converting into invasive, often anaplastic, metastasizing lesions. Partial laryngectomy is recommended for early verrucous carcinoma of the glottis, but irradiation is recommended if the alternative is total laryngectomy. We have observed typical verrucous lesions that have disappeared with radiation therapy and not recurred.
O'Sullivan et al. (80) also have made this observation. Additionally, a variety of tumors that recur after unsuccessful treatment (with surgery, radiation therapy, and/or chemotherapy) are more likely to exhibit more aggressive behavior.
Moderately Advanced Vocal Cord Cancer
Fixed-cord lesions (T3) may be subdivided into relatively favorable or unfavorable lesions. Patients with unfavorable lesions usually have extensive bilateral disease with a compromised airway and are considered to be in the advanced group. Patients with favorable T3 lesions have disease confined mostly to one side of the larynx, have a good airway, and are reliable for follow-up. Some degree of supraglottic and subglottic extension usually exists. The extent of disease and tumor volume, in particular, are related to the likelihood of control after radiation therapy (61).
The patient with a favorable lesion is advised of the alternatives of irradiation with surgical salvage or immediate total laryngectomy. Recent data suggest that the likelihood of locoregional control is better after some altered fractionation schedules compared with conventional once-daily radiation therapy (24,68).
Follow-up examinations are recommended every 4 to 6 weeks for the first year, every 6 to 8 weeks for the second year, every 3 months for the third year, every 6 months for the fourth and fifth years, and annually thereafter. The patient must understand that total laryngectomy may be recommended purely on clinical grounds without biopsy-proven recurrence and that the risk of laryngeal osteochondronecrosis is about 5%.
Evaluation of cord mobility after 50.4 Gy or at the end of radiation therapy has not been helpful in predicting local control (64).
Some patients in whom the vocal cord remained fixed have had local tumor control of the disease for 2 years or longer after radiation therapy.
The major difficulty in using irradiation for the more advanced lesions is distinguishing radiation edema from local recurrence during follow-up examinations (87).
Progressive laryngeal edema, persistent throat pain, or fixation of a previously mobile vocal cord frequently signifies recurrent disease in the larynx, although a few patients with these findings remain disease-free with long-term follow-up.
Extended hemilaryngectomy has been used by a few surgeons in the treatment of well-lateralized fixed-cord lesions. A permanent tracheostomy is usually required because a portion of the cricoid is resected, but a useful voice may be retained (88).
Advanced Vocal Cord Carcinoma
Advanced lesions usually show extensive subglottic and supraglottic extension, bilateral glottic involvement, and invasion of the thyroid, cricoid, or arytenoid cartilage, or frequently all three (5,6).
The airway is compromised, necessitating a tracheostomy at the time of direct laryngoscopy in approximately 30% of patients. Clinically positive lymph nodes are found in about 25% to 30% of patients.
The mainstay of treatment is total laryngectomy, with or without adjuvant radiation therapy. The most frequent sites of local failure after total laryngectomy are around the tracheal stoma, in the base of tongue, and in the neck lymph nodes or soft tissues of the neck. If the neck has clinically negative findings before surgery and if postoperative irradiation is planned, neck dissection may be withheld, and radiation therapy may be used to treat both sides of the neck. However, in practice, most surgeons prefer to perform elective bilateral selective (levels II-IV) neck dissections in conjunction with a total laryngectomy for T3N0 or T4N0 laryngeal cancer, even if postoperative irradiation is planned. If the lymph nodes are clinically positive, a therapeutic neck dissection is performed at the time of laryngectomy.
The indications for postoperative radiation therapy include close or positive margins, significant subglottic extension (1 cm or more), cartilage invasion, perineural invasion,
endothelial-lined space invasion, extension of the primary tumor into the soft tissues of the neck, multiple positive neck nodes, extracapsular extension, and control of subclinical disease in the opposite neck (2,41).
Preoperative irradiation is indicated for patients who have fixed neck nodes, have had an emergency tracheotomy through tumor, or have direct extension of tumor involving the skin.
Definitive irradiation is prescribed for the patient who refuses total laryngectomy or is medically unsuitable for major surgery.
As previously stated, there is evidence that two to three cycles of neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by radiation therapy in patients obtaining at least a partial response may provide a moderate likelihood of larynx preservation without compromising cure (16).
Recent data suggest that concomitant chemotherapy and irradiation is more efficacious than irradiation alone or induction chemotherapy followed by radiation therapy (23,90).
The optimal combination of concomitant chemotherapy and irradiation is unclear (68).
A randomized intergroup trial (Radiation Therapy Oncology Group 91–11) compared three treatment arms: Arm A, three cycles of induction cisplatin and fluorouracil followed by irradiation in complete and partial responders; Arm B, radiation therapy and concomitant cisplatin (100 mg/m2 on days 1, 22, and 43 of radiation therapy); and Arm C, once-daily irradiation (70 Gy in 35 fractions during 7 weeks) alone (23).
Five hundred forty-seven patients were randomized and followed for a median of 3.8 years; 518 patients were evaluable. The rates of larynx preservation were: Arm A, 72%; Arm B, 84%; and Arm C, 67%. The rates of larynx presentation were significantly improved for Arm B; there was no significant difference between Arm A and Arm C. The 5-year survival rates were similar for the three treatment groups: Arm A, 55%; Arm B, 54%; and Arm C, 56%. The likelihood of developing distant metastases was lower for the two groups of patients that received adjuvant chemotherapy.
Surgical Treatment
Cordectomy is an excision of the vocal cord and may be performed by the transoral approach usually with a laser or externally by a thyrotomy. Its use is usually confined to small lesions of the middle third of the cord. After cordectomy, a pseudocord is formed, and the patient has a useful, if somewhat harsh, voice.
Vertical partial laryngectomy (i.e., hemilaryngectomy) allows removal of limited cord lesions with preservation of voice. One entire cord with as much as a third of the opposite cord with the adjacent thyroid cartilage is the maximum cordal involvement suitable for surgery in men; women have a smaller larynx, and usually only one vocal cord may be removed without compromising the airway. Partial fixation of one cord is not a contraindication to hemilaryngectomy, but only a few surgeons have attempted hemilaryngectomy for selected fixed-cord lesions. The maximum subglottic extension suitable for hemilaryngectomy is 8 to 9 mm anteriorly and 5 mm posteriorly; this limit is necessary to preserve the integrity of the cricoid. Tumor extension to the epiglottis, false cord, or both arytenoids is a contraindication to hemilaryngectomy.
Supracricoid partial laryngectomy is used for selected T2 and T3 glottic carcinomas and entails removal of both true and false cords as well as the entire thyroid cartilage. The cricoid is sutured to the epiglottis and hyoid (cricohyoidopexy).
Total laryngectomy with or without neck dissection is the operation of choice for advanced lesions and as a salvage procedure for radiation therapy failures in lesions that are not suited for conservation surgery. The entire larynx is removed, and the pharynx is reconstructed. A permanent tracheostomy is required. Speech may be reconstituted with a prosthesis or with an electrolarynx. One hundred four (63%) of 166 patients entered into the surgery and postoperative irradiation arm of the Veterans Affairs Laryngeal Cancer Study Group randomized trial were evaluable for communication status at 2 years after treatment (38).
Ninety-six patients had undergone a total laryngectomy and communicated as follows: Tracheoesophageal, 27 (28%); esophageal, 5 (5%); artificial larynx, 47 (50%); nonvocal, 7 (7%); and no data, 10 (10%) (38).
One hundred seventy-three patients underwent total laryngectomy and postoperative radiotherapy at the University of Florida and 69 patients were evaluable for 5 years or longer (62). Voice rehabilitation was accomplished as follows: Tracheoesophageal, 19%; artificial larynx, 57%; esophageal, 3%; nonvocal, 14%; and no data, 7%.
Radiation Therapy Technique
Irradiation for T1 or T2 vocal cord cancer is delivered by small portals covering only the primary lesion. The cervical lymph node chain is not electively treated. For T1 lesions, radiation therapy portals extend from the thyroid notch superiorly to the inferior border of the cricoid and fall off anteriorly. The posterior border depends on the posterior extension of the tumor (73). For T2 tumors, the field is extended depending on the anatomic distribution of the tumor. The field size ranges from 4 × 4 cm to 5 × 5 cm (plus an additional 1 cm of “flash” anteriorly) and is occasionally 6 × 6 cm for a large T2 lesion. Portals larger than this increase the risk of edema without improving the cure rate.
A commonly used dose-fractionation schedule at many institutions is 66 Gy for T1 lesions and 70 Gy for T2 cancers given in 2-Gy fractions. Evidence suggests that increasing the dose per fraction may improve the likelihood of local control (4,19,36,37,45,69,97,119). Ample data suggest that 1.8 Gy once daily results in significantly lower local control rates compared with 2 Gy once daily (45). Yamakazi et al. (121) recently reported a prospective trial in which patients with T1N0 squamous cell carcinoma of the glottic larynx were randomized to definitive radiotherapy at 2 Gy per fraction or 2.25 Gy per fraction. The 5-year local control rates were 77% after 2 Gy per fraction and 92% after 2.25 Gy per fraction (p = .004); there was no difference in either acute or late toxicity. Patients with T1 or T2 vocal cord cancer who are treated with once-a-day fractionation at the University of Florida are irradiated with 2.25 Gy per fraction; the dose-fractionation schemes used are shown as follows: Tis–T2 A, 63 Gy in 28 fractions; and T2B, 65.25 Gy in 29 fractions.
At the University of Florida, patients are treated in the supine position; the field borders for a patient with a T1N0 cancer are depicted in Fig. 44.7 (73). The field is checked by the physician at the treatment machine according to palpable anatomic landmarks. This allows the treatment volume to be kept at a minimum and reduces the risk of geographic miss. A three-field technique, using 4-or 6-MV x-rays, is used to deliver approximately 95% of the dose through opposed lateral wedged fields weighted to the side of the lesion; the remaining dose is delivered by an anterior field shifted 0.5 cm toward the side of the lesion (Fig. 44.8) (73). The tumor dose is usually specified at the 95% normalized isodose line.
Irradiation of T3 and T4 lesions requires larger portals, which include the jugulodigastric and middle jugular lymph nodes (Fig. 44.9) (74,85). The inferior jugular lymph nodes are included in a separate low-neck portal. Patients treated at the University of Florida are irradiated in a continuous-course twice daily at 1.2 Gy per fraction to a total dose of 74.4 Gy. The portals are reduced after 45.6 Gy in 38 fractions; the reduced portals cover only the primary lesion.
Intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) is employed if there is a clear advantage associated with this technique. Disadvantages associated with IMRT include increased dose inhomogeneity, increased total body dose, and increased labor and expense. The most common indications for IMRT for laryngeal cancers are the occasional patients with a node-positive T3–T4 cancer in which the retropharyngeal nodes are electively irradiated and the dose to the contralateral parotid gland reduced and/or a difficult low match between the lateral fields used to treat the primary site and upper neck and the anterior low neck field in a patient with a short neck and large shoulders. In the latter instance, IMRT could be used to encompass the entire target volume and avoid the problem of field junctioning entirely. IMRT is especially useful for patients with extensive subglottic invasion where achieving an adequate inferior margin with conventional lateral portals may not be possible.
Evidence from both retrospective and randomized trials points to improved therapeutic ratios with altered fractionation schedules (68). Given that irradiation is effective treatment for head and neck primary squamous cell carcinoma, it should not be surprising that higher doses of irradiation given more intensively would be more effective at providing tumor control. Because most observers have noted no increase in late toxicity with the various regimens, it generally is concluded that these schedules yield an improved therapeutic ratio. A recently updated Radiation Therapy Oncology Group 90–03 trial (24,109) reported on 1,073 patients who were randomly selected to receive one of four fractionation schedules:
• Standard fractionation: 2 Gy per fraction, once a day, 5 days a week, to a total dose of 70 Gy in 35 fractions during 7 weeks;
• Hyperfractionation: 1.2 Gy per fraction, twice daily (≥6 hours apart), 5 days a week, to a total dose of 81.6 Gy in 68 fractions during 7 weeks;
• Accelerated fractionation with split: 1.6 Gy per fraction, twice daily (≥6 hours apart), 5 days a week, to a total dose of 67.2 Gy in 42 fractions during 6 weeks, including a 2-week rest after 38.4 Gy, or;
• Accelerated fractionation with concomitant boost: 1.8 Gy per fraction, once a day, 5 days a week to a large field, plus 1.5 Gy per fraction once a day to a boost field given 6 or more hours after treatment of the large field for the last 12 treatments days, to a total dose of 72 Gy in 42 fractions during 6 weeks.
The 5-year locoregional failure rates were standard fractionation, 59%; hyperfractionation, 51%; accelerated split course, 58%; and concomitant boost, 52%. Both the hyperfractionation and concomitant boost schedules yielded locoregional control rates that were significantly better than standard fractionation. There was a trend toward improved overall survival with hyperfractionation, but no difference in cause-specific survival. Acute toxicity was increased with all three altered fractionation schedules; there was a modest increase in late effects with the concomitant boost schedule.
The treatment technique used for postoperative irradiation after total laryngectomy is depicted in Figure 44.10 (2). The treatment technique for preoperative irradiation is essentially the same as that used for irradiation alone. Alternatively, IMRT may be employed for the indications discussed previously.
Treatment of Recurrence
Most recurrences appear within 18 months, but late recurrences may appear after 5 years. The latter are likely second primary malignancies. The risk of metastatic disease in lymph nodes increases with local recurrence (63).
Recurrence after Radiation Therapy
With careful follow-up, recurrence is sometimes detected before the patient notices a return of hoarseness. There is often minimal lymphedema for 1 to 2 months after irradiation, which usually subsides or stabilizes. An increase in edema, particularly if associated with hoarseness or pain, suggests recurrence, even if there is no obvious tumor. Fixation of a previously mobile
vocal cord usually implies local recurrence, but we have occasionally observed a patient who has experienced a fixed cord with an otherwise normal-appearing larynx and who has not shown evidence of recurrence.
It may be difficult to diagnose recurrence if the tumor is submucosal. Generous, deep biopsies are required. If recurrence is strongly suspected, laryngectomy may rarely be advised without biopsy-confirmed evidence of recurrence. Positron emission tomography may be useful to distinguish recurrent tumor from necrosis.
Radiation therapy failures may be salvaged by cordectomy, hemilaryngectomy, supracricoid partial laryngectomy, or total laryngectomy. Biller et al. (8) reported a 78% salvage rate by hemilaryngectomy for 18 selected patients in whom irradiation failed; total laryngectomy was eventually required in 2 patients. Only two patients died of cancer. These investigators offered guidelines for using hemilaryngectomy: Contralateral vocal cord is normal, arytenoid is not involved, subglottic extension does not exceed 5 mm, and vocal cord is not fixed. In our experience, 14 patients irradiated for T1 or T2 vocal cord cancers underwent a hemilaryngectomy after local recurrence and 8 were successfully salvaged (60).
Recurrence after Surgery
The rate of salvage by irradiation for recurrences or new tumors that appear after initial treatment by hemilaryngectomy is about 50%. Lee et al. (53) reported seven successes among 12 patients; one lesion was later controlled by total laryngectomy. Total laryngectomy can be used successfully to treat hemilaryngectomy failures not suitable for radiation therapy. Irradiation rarely cures patients with recurrence in the neck or stoma after total laryngectomy.
Treatment Selection and Technique: Supraglottic Larynx Carcinoma
Selection of Treatment Modality
Patients with supraglottic laryngeal carcinoma may be considered to be in an early or favorable group suitable for radiation therapy or conservation laryngectomy or an unfavorable group often requiring total laryngectomy.
Early and Moderately Advanced Supraglottic Lesions
Treatment of the primary lesion for the early group is by external-beam irradiation or supraglottic laryngectomy, with or without adjuvant irradiation (39). Transoral laser excision is effective in experienced hands for small, selected lesions (103). Total laryngectomy is rarely indicated as the initial treatment for this group of patients and is reserved for treatment failures.
Radiation therapy and supraglottic laryngectomy are highly successful modes of therapy for early lesions (39). Approximately 50% of supraglottic laryngectomies performed at the University of Florida have been followed by postoperative irradiation because of neck disease and, less often, positive margins.
The decision to use radiation therapy or supraglottic laryngectomy depends on several factors including the anatomic extent of the tumor, medical condition of the patient, philosophy of the attending physician(s), and the inclination of the patient and family. Overall, about 80% of patients are treated initially by irradiation. Approximately half of the patients seen in our clinic whose lesions are technically suitable for a supraglottic laryngectomy are not suitable for medical reasons (e.g., inadequate pulmonary status or other major medical problems); these patients are treated with radiation therapy.
Analysis of local control by anatomic site within the supraglottic larynx shows no obvious differences in local control by irradiation for similarly staged lesions. Invasion of the pre-epiglottic space is not a contraindication to supraglottic laryngectomy or irradiation. Primary tumor volume based on pretreatment CT is inversely related to local tumor control after radiation therapy (61). A large, bulky infiltrative lesion, especially one with extensive preepiglottic space invasion, is a common reason to select supraglottic laryngectomy.
The status of the neck often determines the selection of treatment of the primary lesion. Patients with clinically negative neck nodes have a high risk for occult neck disease and may be treated by radiation therapy or supraglottic laryngectomy and bilateral selective neck dissections, (levels II–IV).
If a patient has an early-stage primary lesion but advanced neck disease (N2b or N3), combined treatment is frequently necessary to control the neck disease (70). In these cases, the primary lesion is usually treated by irradiation alone, with surgery added to the treatment of the involved neck site(s). If the same patient were treated with supraglottic laryngectomy, neck dissection, and postoperative irradiation, the portals would unnecessarily cover the primary site and the neck. If the patient has early, resectable neck disease (N1 or N2a) and surgery is elected for the primary site, postoperative irradiation is added only because of unexpected findings (e.g., positive margins, multiple positive nodes, or extracapsular extension). We prefer to avoid routine high-dose preoperative or postoperative irradiation in conjunction with a supraglottic laryngectomy because the lymphedema of the remaining larynx may be considerable, although it eventually subsides. However, Lee et al. (54) from M.D. Anderson Cancer Center reported excellent results with combined supraglottic laryngectomy and postoperative irradiation for moderately advanced lesions.
Advanced Supraglottic Lesions
Although a subset of these patients may be suitable for a supraglottic or supracricoid laryngectomy, total laryngectomy is the main surgical option. Selected advanced lesions, especially those that are mainly exophytic, may be treated by radiation therapy and concomitant chemotherapy (90) with total laryngectomy reserved for irradiation failures.
For patients whose primary lesion is to be treated by a total or partial laryngectomy and who have resectable neck disease, surgery is the initial treatment, and postoperative irradiation is added if needed. If the neck disease is unresectable, preoperative radiation therapy is used. The indications for preoperative and postoperative irradiation have been previously outlined.
Surgical Treatment
Supraglottic Laryngectomy
Supraglottic laryngectomy is voice-sparing surgery that can be used successfully for selected lesions involving the epiglottis, a single arytenoid, the aryepiglottic fold, or the false vocal cord. Extension of the tumor to the true vocal cord, the anterior commissure, or both arytenoids; fixation of the vocal cord; or thyroid or cricoid cartilage invasion precludes supraglottic laryngectomy. The supraglottic laryngectomy may be extended to include the base of the tongue if one lingual artery is preserved.
All patients have difficulty swallowing with a tendency to aspirate immediately after surgery, but almost all learn to swallow again in a short time; motivation and the amount of tissue removed are key factors in learning to swallow again. Preoperatively, adequate pulmonary reserve is evaluated by blood gas determinations, function tests, chest roentgenography, and a work test involving walking the patient up two flights of stairs to determine tolerance to pulmonary stress. The voice quality is generally normal after supraglottic laryngectomy.
Supracricoid Laryngectomy
This procedure is an option for lesions extending from the supraglottis into one or both vocal cords. However, vocal cord fixation is a relative contraindication. At least one arytenoid must be preserved for successful decannulation and phonation. Extension to the cricoid and thyroid cartilage destruction also preclude its use. Phonation and respiratory function are reconstituted by approximating the cricoid to the hyoid (cricohyoidopexy).
Wide-Field Total Laryngectomy
Total laryngectomy is performed as previously described.
Radiation Therapy Technique
The primary lesion and both sides of the neck are treated with opposed lateral portals; wedges are used to compensate for the contour of the neck (Fig. 44.11) (73). The lower neck nodes are irradiated through a separate anterior portal. IMRT may be employed to spare one or both parotids and to avoid a low match line in the occasional patient with a short neck and large shoulders. We currently use the concomitant boost fractionation schedule when employing IMRT.
In the case of clinically positive nodes, an electron beam portal may be used to increase the dose to the posterior cervical nodes after the fields are reduced to avoid the spinal cord at 45 Gy. CT is obtained 4 weeks after completing radiotherapy, and a neck dissection is added if the residual cancer in the nodes is thought to exceed 5%; otherwise the patient is observed and a CT is repeated in 3 months (70).
Patients experience a sore throat, loss of taste, and moderate dryness during irradiation. Edema of the arytenoids may occur and give a sensation of a lump in the throat. Tracheostomy is rarely necessary, even for bulky lesions.
Edema of the larynx may persist for several months to a year. Patients who continue to smoke heighten the side effects of dryness, dysphagia, and hoarseness.
Preoperative and Postoperative Treatment Technique
If total laryngectomy is required and the lesion is resectable, postoperative radiation therapy is preferred because there is no evidence that preoperative irradiation produces any better locoregional control or survival rates than surgery and postoperative radiation therapy. Irradiation is added for close or positive margins, invasion of soft tissues of the neck, significant subglottic extension (1 cm or more), thyroid cartilage invasion, multiple positive nodes, and extracapsular extension. The high-risk areas are usually the base of the tongue and the neck.
The dose for postoperative irradiation as a function of known residual disease is as follows: Negative margins, 60 Gy in 30 fractions; microscopically positive margins, 66 Gy in 33 fractions; and gross residual disease, 70 Gy in 35 fractions. All patients are treated with a continuous course, one fraction per day, 5 days per week. The lower neck is treated with doses to 50 Gy in 25 fractions at Dmax. If there is subglottic extension, the dose to the stoma is boosted with electrons (usually 10 to 14 MeV) for an additional 10 Gy in five fractions. The treatment technique is shown in Fig. 44.10 (2). If postoperative irradiation is added after a supraglottic laryngectomy, the dose is lowered to 55.8 Gy
given in 1.8 Gy fractions. This dose produces acceptable rates of local control and laryngeal edema (94).
The treatment technique used for preoperative radiation therapy is essentially the same as that used for patients treated with irradiation alone, using doses of 50 to 60 Gy at 1.8 to 2 Gy per fraction. Thereafter, the dose is boosted to areas of unresectable disease (usually the neck) to total doses ranging from 65 to 70 Gy.
Treatment of Recurrence
Failures after supraglottic laryngectomy or radiation therapy can frequently be controlled by further treatment; therefore, recognition of recurrence should be vigorously pursued (39). Salvage of patients with recurrence after combined total laryngectomy and irradiation is uncommon. Stomal recurrences are occasionally controlled by radiation therapy or surgery.
Results of Treatment
Vocal Cord Cancer
The local control and survival rates after treatment of early-stage glottic carcinoma are depicted in Tables 44.3, 44.4, 44.5 and 44.6 (71). The local control and survival rates are similar for transoral laser excision, open partial laryngectomy, and radiotherapy. Larynx preservation rates are also comparable. Voice quality depends on the amount of tissue removed with partial laryngectomy and is probably similar for patients with limited lesions treated with laser to those undergoing radiotherapy and poorer for patients undergoing open partial laryngectomy (71).
Foote et al. (22) reported on 81 patients who underwent laryngectomy for T3 cancers at the Mayo Clinic between 1970 and 1981. Seventy-five patients underwent a total laryngectomy and 6 underwent a near-total laryngectomy; 53 patients received a neck dissection. No patient underwent adjuvant irradiation or chemotherapy. The 5-year rates of locoregional control, cause-specific survival, and absolute survival were 74%, 74%, and 54%, respectively. The results of definitive radiation therapy patients with T3 glottic carcinoma are depicted in Table 44.7 (85) and are similar to the surgical outcomes reported by Foote et al. (22).
The survival and control rates of patients with T3 fixed-cord lesions treated at the University of Florida are presented in Table 44.8 (67). There was no relationship between subsequent local control and whether the vocal cord remained fixed or became mobile during irradiation. The incidence of severe complications, including those after the initial treatment and any later salvage procedures, was 15% after radiation therapy alone and 15% after surgery alone or combined with adjuvant irradiation. The vocal quality varied from fair to nearly normal.
The results of treatment of T4 vocal cord carcinoma in four surgical series and two radiotherapy series are summarized in Table 44.9 (35).
Parsons et al. (86) reviewed the literature and reported a local control rate of 62% in a series of 87 patients treated with irradiation alone for T4 glottic carcinoma.
Combined-Therapy Results
The proportion of patients suitable for a supraglottic laryngectomy is depicted in Table 44.10 (39). Depending on the referral patterns, a modest subset of patients is suitable for this operation. The extent of neck disease for patients treated with either surgery or radiotherapy is shown in Table 44.11 (39). In general, patients treated with supraglottic laryngectomy appropriately have earlier stage neck disease and would be anticipated to have a lower risk of distant failure and improved survival. The local control rates after transoral laser, radiotherapy, and supraglottic laryngectomy are summarized in Tables 44.12, 44.13 and 44.14, respectively (39). In general, the local control rates after transoral laser excision are fairly good for patients with T1–T2 tumors and tend to deteriorate for those with more advanced disease. The local control rate are excellent for patients selected for supraglottic laryngectomy. However, the incidence of severe complications tends to be higher after supraglottic laryngectomy compared with radiotherapy and transoral laser excision (Table 44.15) (39).
Follow-Up Policy
Follow-up of patients with early lesions is planned for every 4 to 8 weeks for 2 years, every 3 months for the third year, and every 6 months for years 4 and 5, and then annually for life.
Follow-up of patients with vocal cord or supraglottic larynx lesions treated by radiation therapy or conservative surgery is almost more important than the treatment itself because early detection of recurrence usually results in salvage that may include cure with voice preservation.
If recurrence is suspected but the biopsy is negative, patients are reexamined at 2- to 4-week intervals until the matter is settled. The value of follow-up CT scans for detecting early local recurrence is investigational.
Wagenfeld et al. (112) studied 740 cases of glottic larynx cancer treated from 1965 to 1974 to determine the incidence of second respiratory tract malignancies. There was a minimum follow-up of 5 years. There were 48 second respiratory tract malignancies, although only 14 were expected. Twenty-five were in the lung, and 23 were scattered among other head and neck sites. Only 7 of the 23 second head and neck primary lesions resulted in death; these second lesions were frequently diagnosed in an early stage during routine follow-up for the glottic lesion.
Because the risk of a lethal lung primary lesion is nearly as great as that of dying of an early glottic carcinoma, it makes sense to obtain annual chest roentgenograms. Approximately 50% of patients who receive moderate-to-high dose radiotherapy to the entire thyroid gland will develop hypothyroidism within 5 years, so that thyroid functions are checked every 6 to 12 months and thyroid replacement is initiated if the thyroid-stimulating hormone level begins to rise (27).
Sequelae of Treatment
Surgical Sequelae
Neel et al. (78) reported a 26% incidence of nonfatal complications for cordectomy. Immediate postoperative complications included atelectasis and pneumonia, severe subcutaneous emphysema in the neck, bleeding from the tracheotomy site or larynx, wound complications, and airway obstruction requiring tracheotomy. Late complications included granulation tissue that had to be removed by direct laryngoscopy to exclude recurrences, extrusion of cartilage, laryngeal stenosis, and obstructing laryngeal web.
The postoperative complications and sequelae of hemilaryngectomy include chondritis, wound slough, inadequate glottic closure, and anterior commissure webs (25). The complications associated with supraglottic laryngectomy and total laryngectomy for supraglottic carcinomas include fistula (8%), carotid artery exposure or blowout (3% to 5%), infection or wound sloughing (3% to 7%), and fatal complications (3%) (25). The risk of complications increased if tumor margins were involved by tumor; there was no change in risk associated with age, sex, race, laryngeal site, stage of primary tumor, size of primary tumor, use of low-dose preoperative irradiation, or status of the positive nodes.
The incidence of complications after treatment of supraglottic carcinoma is depicted in Table 44.15 (39).
Radiation Therapy Sequelae
The acute reactions from the treatment of early vocal cord cancer using a tumor dose of 2.25 Gy per day to administer a total dose 63 Gy (60Co, five fractions per week) are relatively mild. During the first 2 to 3 weeks, the voice may improve as the tumor regresses. The voice generally becomes hoarse again because of radiation-induced changes, even though the tumor continues to regress. A mild sore throat develops beginning at the end of the second week, but medication is usually not required. The voice begins to improve approximately 3 weeks after completion of treatment, usually reaching a plateau in 2 to 3 months. Patients with extensive lesions often recover a normal voice, although not as frequently as those with small tumors.
Edema of the larynx is the most common sequela after irradiation for glottic or supraglottic lesions. The rate of clearance of the edema is related to the irradiation dose, volume of tissue irradiated, addition of a neck dissection, continued use of alcohol and tobacco, and size and extent of the original lesion. Edema may be accentuated by a radical neck dissection and may require 6 to 12 months to subside.
Soft tissue necrosis leading to chondritis occurs in fewer than 1% of patients, usually in those who continue to smoke. Soft tissue and cartilage necroses mimic recurrence, with hoarseness, pain, and edema; a laryngectomy may be recommended as a last resort for fear of recurrent cancer, even though biopsy specimens show only necrosis.
Corticosteroids such as dexamethasone (Decadron) have been used to reduce radiation-induced edema after recurrence has been ruled out by biopsy. If ulceration and pain occur, administration of an antibiotic such as tetracycline may help. Of 519 patients with T1N0 or T2N0 vocal cord cancer treated at the University of Florida, 5 (1%) experienced severe complications (60), including total laryngectomy for a suspected local recurrence (1 patient), permanent tracheostomy for edema (3 patients), and a pharyngocutaneous fistula after a salvage total laryngectomy (1 patient).
In patients irradiated for supraglottic carcinoma, sore throat persists 3 to 4 weeks after completion of treatment. There is an associated dry mouth from irradiation of the salivary and parotid glands, a loss of taste, and a sensation of a lump in the throat. It is unusual for patients to require a tracheotomy before irradiation unless severe lymphedema develops at the time of direct laryngoscopy and biopsy. However, in patients who have recovered from the direct laryngoscopy and biopsy without obstruction, a tracheotomy has rarely been required during a fractionated course of radiation therapy.
Patients treated twice a day with 1.2 Gy fractions (continuous-course technique) to total doses of 74.4 to 76.8 Gy usually have more brisk acute reactions than those treated once a day with 2-Gy fractions. Approximately 20% treated with twice-a-day irradiation require temporary gastrostomy feeding tubes because they have difficulty in swallowing (1).
Examples of acute chondritis requiring discontinuation of treatment have not been seen, although most epiglottic lesions exhibit cartilage invasion.
The epiglottis, both suprahyoid and infrahyoid portions, remains thicker than normal for long periods of time, but this is not often associated with difficulty in swallowing, respiratory obstruction, or aspiration. The patient is cautioned to eat and drink slowly until the edema resolves. The false cord and arytenoids may develop some edema.
Lesions of the suprahyoid epiglottis frequently destroy the tip of the epiglottis, and it may require some time for the exposed cartilage to heal. Successful irradiation of infrahyoid epiglottis tumors is not associated with a high rate of necrosis, even though most of these lesions penetrate the porous epiglottic cartilage.
The incidence of severe late complications in 274 patients treated with radiation therapy alone or combined with neck dissection at the University of Florida was 4% (39).
Radiation Therapy Sequelae
The acute reactions from the treatment of early vocal cord cancer using a tumor dose of 2.25 Gy per day to administer a total dose 63 Gy (60Co, five fractions per week) are relatively mild. During the first 2 to 3 weeks, the voice may improve as the tumor regresses. The voice generally becomes hoarse again because of radiation-induced changes, even though the tumor continues to regress. A mild sore throat develops beginning at the end of the second week, but medication is usually not required. The voice begins to improve approximately 3 weeks after completion of treatment, usually reaching a plateau in 2 to 3 months. Patients with extensive lesions often recover a normal voice, although not as frequently as those with small tumors.
Edema of the larynx is the most common sequela after irradiation for glottic or supraglottic lesions. The rate of clearance of the edema is related to the irradiation dose, volume of tissue irradiated, addition of a neck dissection, continued use of alcohol and tobacco, and size and extent of the original lesion. Edema may be accentuated by a radical neck dissection and may require 6 to 12 months to subside.
Soft tissue necrosis leading to chondritis occurs in fewer than 1% of patients, usually in those who continue to smoke. Soft tissue and cartilage necroses mimic recurrence, with hoarseness, pain, and edema; a laryngectomy may be recommended as a last resort for fear of recurrent cancer, even though biopsy specimens show only necrosis.
Corticosteroids such as dexamethasone (Decadron) have been used to reduce radiation-induced edema after recurrence has been ruled out by biopsy. If ulceration and pain occur, administration of an antibiotic such as tetracycline may help. Of 519 patients with T1N0 or T2N0 vocal cord cancer treated at the University of Florida, 5 (1%) experienced severe complications (60), including total laryngectomy for a suspected local recurrence (1 patient), permanent tracheostomy for edema (3 patients), and a pharyngocutaneous fistula after a salvage total laryngectomy (1 patient).
In patients irradiated for supraglottic carcinoma, sore throat persists 3 to 4 weeks after completion of treatment. There is an associated dry mouth from irradiation of the salivary and parotid glands, a loss of taste, and a sensation of a lump in the throat. It is unusual for patients to require a tracheotomy before irradiation unless severe lymphedema develops at the time of direct laryngoscopy and biopsy. However, in patients who have recovered from the direct laryngoscopy and biopsy without obstruction, a tracheotomy has rarely been required during a fractionated course of radiation therapy.
Patients treated twice a day with 1.2 Gy fractions (continuous-course technique) to total doses of 74.4 to 76.8 Gy usually have more brisk acute reactions than those treated once a day with 2-Gy fractions. Approximately 20% treated with twice-a-day irradiation require temporary gastrostomy feeding tubes because they have difficulty in swallowing (1).
Examples of acute chondritis requiring discontinuation of treatment have not been seen, although most epiglottic lesions exhibit cartilage invasion.
The epiglottis, both suprahyoid and infrahyoid portions, remains thicker than normal for long periods of time, but this is not often associated with difficulty in swallowing, respiratory obstruction, or aspiration. The patient is cautioned to eat and drink slowly until the edema resolves. The false cord and arytenoids may develop some edema.
Lesions of the suprahyoid epiglottis frequently destroy the tip of the epiglottis, and it may require some time for the exposed cartilage to heal. Successful irradiation of infrahyoid epiglottis tumors is not associated with a high rate of necrosis, even though most of these lesions penetrate the porous epiglottic cartilage.
The incidence of severe late complications in 274 patients treated with radiation therapy alone or combined with neck dissection at the University of Florida was 4% (39).
