Investigation of residual cancer node levels in planned neck dissection after concurrent chemoradiotherapy for oropharyngeal and hypopharyngeal cancer

Abstract

We investigated four patients with oropharyngeal cancer and 12 patients with hypopharyngeal cancer who underwent planned neck dissection (PND) after concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) from December 2001 to January 2005. We performed neck dissections in levels I to V or II to V. But we found that there was no residual cancer in the initially negative neck level. We conclude that we can limit the excision in the initially positive level in planned neck dissection.