KEY TAKEAWAYS
- The study aimed to assess clinical characteristics, treatment outcomes, and prognostic factors in HNNENs.
- The results revealed that radiotherapy’s significant role in improving local-regional control, emphasizing the importance of combined treatments for HNNENs.
Neuroendocrine neoplasm, a rarity in oncology, presents as an uncommon cancer primarily affecting the head and neck.
Xinqi Shi and the team aimed to analyze the clinical features, treatment outcomes, and prognostic factors in head and neck neuroendocrine neoplasms.
The study, conducted between November 2000 and November 2021, retrospectively reviewed 93 patients diagnosed with neuroendocrine neoplasms of the head and neck (HNNENs). Initial treatments included chemotherapy (induction, adjuvant, or concurrent) combined with radiotherapy in 40 patients (C + RT group), surgery followed by post-operative radiotherapy in 34 patients (S + RT group), and surgery plus salvage therapy in 19 patients (S + Sa group).
The results revealed that the median follow-up time stood at 64.5 months. The 5-year overall survival rate (OS), progression-free survival rate (PFS), loco-regional relapse-free survival free rate (LRRFS), and distant metastasis-free survival rate (DMFS) were 64.5%, 51.6%, 66.6%, and 62.1%, respectively.
For stage I-II, the 5-year LRRFS for patients’ treatment regimen with or without radiotherapy (C + RT and S + RT groups versus S + Sa group) was 75.0% versus 12.7% (P= 0.015). Meanwhile, for stage III-IV, the 5-year LRRFS stood at 77.8% versus 50.0% (P= 0.006). The 5-year DMFS values for patients with or without systemic therapy (C + RT group versus S + RT or S + Sa) were 71.2% and 51.5% (P= 0.075). About 4 patients (47.3%) experienced treatment failure, with distant metastasis emerging as the primary failure pattern.
The study concluded that radiotherapy significantly enhanced local-regional control, emphasizing its crucial role in managing primary HNNENs. It further highlighted the importance of combining local and systemic treatments for optimal management of this condition.
No funding was disclosed.
Source: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38834932/
Shi X, Huang X, Wang K, et al. (2024). “Long-term outcomes and prognosis of neuroendocrine neoplasms of the head and neck: a cohort from a single institution.” J Cancer Res Clin Oncol. 2024 Jun 4;150(6):288. doi: 10.1007/s00432-024-05726-1. PMID: 38834932; PMCID: PMC11150319.
