Induction chemotherapy plus radiation compared with surgery plus radiation in patients with advanced laryngeal cancer

Article Abstract:

Each year, more than 12,000 people will be diagnosed with cancer of the larynx, and about 3,700 will die of this disease. Since the surgical removal of the larynx, sometimes called the "voice box", results in loss of the natural voice, there is incentive to develop alternate treatments. When the cancer has grown large but has not yet spread to the nearby lymph nodes, it is often possible to remove only a portion of the larynx, or use radiation therapy, and spare vocal function. However, in more advanced cancer cases, such treatments result in lower survival rates. A study was undertaken to determine if a combination of chemotherapy and radiation might be just as effective as surgery with radiation while providing a better chance for the preservation of the voice. A total of 332 patients with Stage III or Stage IV laryngeal cancer were randomly assigned to receive either chemotherapy and radiotherapy, or surgery with radiotherapy. The patients who suffered recurrence of tumor after treatment with chemotherapy and radiotherapy were surgically treated. Overall, there were no significant differences in survival between the two treatment groups. The survival after two years was estimated to be 68 percent for both groups. The disease-free survival was somewhat less in the group treated with chemotherapy and radiation, but this difference was not statistically significant. It was possible to preserve the larynx in 64 percent of the patients treated with chemotherapy and radiotherapy, and successful preservation of the larynx had no effect on the likelihood of disease-free survival of the patient. The results of this study indicate that the combination of chemotherapy and radiotherapy may make it possible to preserve vocal function in a high percentage of patients with advanced laryngeal cancer without compromising survival. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Surgery, Chemotherapy

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Therapeutic options for laryngeal cancer

Article Abstract:

Giving patients with laryngeal cancer chemotherapy and radiation therapy at the same time may be more effective than giving them separately, according to a study published in 2003. Any patient who cannot tolerate combination treatment should be treated with radiotherapy alone. Combination treatment can preserve the larynx, but some patients with advanced cancer may still need surgery.

Care and treatment

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Laryngeal transplantation and 40-month follow-up

Article Abstract:

Doctors describe the successful transplantation of a larynx, trachea, pharynx, thyroid, and parathyroid glands to treat a man whose larynx and pharynx had been crushed 20 years before in a motorcycle accident. The man learned to speak and could swallow normally.

Case studies, Laryngoplasty

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