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For Release: October 23, 2000More Intense Radiation Treatments Benefit Patients With Laryngeal and Pharyngeal Cancer
Patients with locally advanced laryngeal or pharyngeal cancer treated with more intense radiation therapy have a better chance for survival as well as a better chance of preserving their voice box or pharynx, a new study shows.
The study of 331 patients found a 40 percent survival rate (at five years) for patients treated twice-a-day compared to a 30 percent chance of survival for patients treated only once-a-day, says Bernard Cummings, M.D. of Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto, Canada. In addition, 55 percent of patients treated twice a day compared to 45 percent treated once a day were able to keep their voice box or pharynx.
The higher doses of radiation did not increase late toxicities, however, patients did have more intense short-term side effects in their mouth and throat when they were treated twice a day.
These types of patients are treated differently in the United States, notes Dr. Cummings. Often they undergo surgery first, followed by six weeks of radiation. "We were able to increase the radiation dose, without increasing the number of treatment days, by treating each patient twice-a-day, rather than once-a-day," he says.
Dr. Cummings presented the study on October 23 during the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology annual meeting. Patients in the study had locally advanced cancer of the oropharynx, larynx or hypopharynx. About two-thirds also had cancer in their nearby lymph nodes.
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