Verification of postoperative cervical lymph node metastasis from superficial carcinoma of the hypopharynx

Abstract

Transoral resection of early-stage cancer of the hypopharynx is currently practiced, and our department has been performing endoscopic laryngopharyngeal surgery （ELPS） for Tis to some T3 cases. In this study, we examined the cases of cervical lymph node metastasis after ELPS at our department and found two cases among 38 cases from 2016 to 2021. Three cases were cured without metastasis or recurrence over a 5-year period.
The incidence of lymph node metastasis is high in early-stage hypopharyngeal carcinoma with a tumor thickness of over 1,000μm or vascular invasion on pathological examination. In all of the two metastatic cases and the three cured cases, pathological examination revealed a tumor thickness of more than 1,000μm, with no vascular invasion. However, endoscopic findings showed type 0-Ⅰs＋Ⅱc in the two metastatic cases, but type 0-Ⅰs in the three cured cases.
It is thought that endoscopic findings may be able to estimate the prognostic impact.