Candidates for larynx preservation: the next step?

Abstract

Nonsurgical treatment approaches to enable larynx preservation in patients who would otherwise undergo laryngectomy have evolved over recent years. Randomized trials have demonstrated that concurrent chemotherapy and radiotherapy is more effective than doublet cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) (PF)-based induction chemotherapy and radiotherapy in enabling larynx preservation. However, concurrent chemotherapy and radiotherapy is also associated with more toxicities than induction PF followed by radiotherapy. The triplet induction regimen of docetaxel, cisplatin, and 5-FU (TPF) is more effective than PF and is now considered to be the standard induction chemotherapy regimen for future larynx preservation trials. Manipulating the postinduction treatment regimen may help to improve larynx preservation rates, and possibly survival, and the use of concurrent chemoradiotherapy and radiotherapy plus the epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitor cetuximab has been investigated in this setting. Determining the most effective treatment approach for larynx preservation will involve conducting a trial comparing concurrent chemotherapy and radiotherapy with sequential TPF induction chemotherapy followed by either radiotherapy or cetuximab plus radiotherapy. Collaboration among international groups is required to assess which approach would be most beneficial in terms of larynx function preservation, disease control, and survival.