Background: This study evaluates the contemporary care for patients with locally recurrent nasopharyngeal carcinoma after failure of the primary course of intensity modulated radiotherapy.
Methods: Eligible patients were identified through the Hong Kong Cancer Registry database. Patterns of care and treatment outcomes were analyzed.
Results: Two hundred seventy-two patients with locally recurrent tumors were identified. Of them, 30.9% received surgery, whereas 35.7% received re-irradiation (re-RT). The 5-year overall survival (OS) for the whole group was 30.2%. Old age and advanced rT classification were adverse prognostic factors, whereas surgery (mainly in resectable recurrence) was associated with favorable survival outcome. The 5-year OS rates for patients who received surgery and re-RT were 56.3% and 21.8%, respectively.
Conclusions: Early detection of resectable recurrence is of paramount importance as surgery for resectable tumors offers the potential to achieve excellent outcomes. Re-RT could be considered in selected patients with unresectable disease and favorable prognostic features.
Keywords: local recurrence; nasopharyngeal carcinoma; reirradiation; salvage; surgery.
© 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.