Abstract
Thirty-one patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma who consulted the Department of Otolaryngology, Tenri Hospital, from March 1966 to October 1979 were treated with the following results.
(1) These 31 patients consisted of 20 males and 11 females, and the peak of the age-distribution was between 40 and 60 years old.
(2) The most frequent initial symptom was that of the ear, followed in order by those related to the nose, the neck and cranial nerves. Among the symptoms of cranial nerves those related to the Vth and the VIth nerve were the most marked.
(3) The period between the appearance of symptoms and the consultation at our department was less than 6 months.
(4) Histological examination revealed that the above-mentioned nasopharyngeal carcinoma was composed of squamous cell carcinoma, lymphoepithelioma and anaplastic carcinoma in 23, 8 and 8 patients, respectively. According to the classification of UICC (1978), 23 of the 31 patients belonged to Stage IV.
(5) The 31 hospitalized patients were principally treated using X-rays. Furthermore, among these 31 patients 26 were treated in combination with other procedures, such as chemotherapy, arterial infusion of anti-cancer drugs, palatal fenestration and neck dissection. Through the above-mentioned treatments, the following results were obtained. The three-year survival rate was 62.5%, whereas the five-year survival rate was 33.3%.
(6) Metastasis of the tumor was found in the liver and the bones. Furthermore, three of the 10 hospitalized patients died due to a sudden rupture of the internal carotid artery.
