Outcome in adult patients with head and neck sarcomas--a 10-year analysis

Abstract

Background and objective: Sarcomas of the head and neck in adults are malignant tumors with many histological subtypes and sites of origin. The purpose of this study was to analyze the outcome of adult patients suffering from head and neck sarcomas and to identify any clinical and histological predictors of outcome.

Materials and methods: The medical records of 74 patients treated during 1999-2008 were reviewed. All patients suffered from primary head and neck sarcomas.

Results: The mean survival of patients was 44.49 +/- 32.25 months. The 2- and 5-year overall survival rates were 83.78% and 60.81%. The nodal status (P = 0.032), tumor size (P < 0.0001), tumor location (P = 0.03), histological type (P = 0.002), the involvement of bone (P = 0.032), and age (P < 0.0001) were significant parameters influencing survival.

Conclusion: This study demonstrated a better than expected crude overall survival and a higher rate of recovery of involved regional lymph nodes with evidence of poorer outcome when cervical metastases are evident. It is suggested that this may reflect the impact of specialist head and neck surgical techniques (applicable to all head and neck malignancy) as well as the recognized need for specialization in pathology and nonsurgical oncology in the care of these patients.