2024 Volume 67 Issue 2 Pages 68-73
Radiation therapy is an important treatment option for laryngeal cancer; however, it could cause serious complications, including laryngeal necrosis. This necrosis is considered to be caused by circulatory disturbance in the laryngeal tissues. Bevacizumab is one of the antiangiogenic drugs that is widely used for various kinds of cancer. Meanwhile, bevacizumab induces variable complications, and medication-related osteonecrosis of the jaw is one of these adverse events. Moreover, an association between antiangiogenic drugs and appendicular skeleton has been described in a few case reports. The present case developed severe cricoid cartilage necrosis that occurred after the administration of bevacizumab. It was used to treat newly occurring adenocarcinoma of the lung five years after radiation therapy for laryngeal cancer. In this case, apparent exacerbation of the laryngeal necrosis occurred 9 weeks after the initiation of chemotherapy. Bevacizumab was approved in 2007 as a treatment for unresectable, advanced or recurrent colorectal cancer, and its indications have since been expanded to various carcinomas. In addition, drugs targeting angiogenesis-related molecules, such as VEGF, have been increasing in recent years. It is assumed that there are a number of cases in which antiangiogenic drugs are used for metachronous double cancer after treatment for head and neck cancer. Careful attention needs to be paid to patients undergoing chemotherapy, including bevacizumab, after radiation therapy for head and neck cancer.
