Clinical Study of Surgical Resection for Pulmonary Metastasis of Head and Neck Cancer

Abstract

Objectives:

Although chemotherapy is a common treatment for pulmonary metastasis of head and neck cancer, the prognosis is still poor. This study aimed to examine and evaluate the efficacy of surgical resection for pulmonary metastasis of head and neck cancer.

Methods:

A total of 15 patients who had undergone 19 resections were examined at our hospital between 2005 and 2012. The patients were followed up for at least 22 months after the surgery, or until their death, with a median period of 36 months. Among the 15 patients, 11 had squamous cell carcinoma, 3 had adenoid cystic carcinoma, and one had malignant melanoma.

Results:

Of the 19 resections, partial lung resection was performed in 13 cases, lobectomy in 4, and segmentectomy in 2. Video-assisted thoracic surgery was performed in all cases. The mean surgical time, operative blood loss, and length of postoperative hospital stay were 104 minutes, 64 mL, and 7.8 days, respectively. Only 1 patient showed deterioration of the postoperative performance status. For patients with squamous cell carcinoma, the number of pulmonary metastases was 2 or less at the preoperative evaluation. The 3- and 5-year disease-specific survival rates after surgical resection in patients with squamous cell carcinoma were 54.6% and 20.5%, respectively. All patients with adenoid cystic carcinoma and malignant melanoma have survived to date.

Conclusions:

Lung surgical resection can be considered as one of the effective treatments for pulmonary metastasis of head and neck cancer to improve patient prognosis, with minimal invasion and complications.