Laryngeal cancer without spread to the neck: Treatment options and outcome

We examined treatment and outcome variables in patients who had laryngeal cancer without clinical evidence of spread to the neck. In our patient population, there was a 24% overall recurrence rate for N₀ laryngcal cancer. Initial manifestations, including stage and location of tumor, did not influence recurrence (P >.1). Initial treatment of the primary T₃ or T₄ tumor with radiotherapy alone was positively correlated with recurrence (P <.0 for T₃ P<.0 for T₄), but initial treatment of the neck did not appear to affect chance of regional or distant recurrence (P >.1). Approximately half of the patients who had recurrent disease were salvaged. Neither chance of salvage nor final disease-free status was significantly associated with any of the variables (P >.1).