Risk Factors of Ototoxicity After Cisplatin-Based Chemo-Irradiation in Patients With Locally Advanced Head-and-Neck Cancer: A Multivariate Analysis

Purpose: Cisplatin chemo-irradiation is increasingly used in locally advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck. The objective of this study is to determine risk factors of ototoxicity due to intra-arterial high-dose cisplatin chemoradiation. Methods and Materials: A prospective analysis of hearing thresholds at low and (ultra) high frequencies obtained before, during, and after treatment in 146 patients. Treatment consisted of intra-arterial infusion of high-dose cisplatin (150 mg/m2 , four courses) with sodium thiosulfate rescue and concurrent radiation therapy (70 Gy). Patient and chemoradiation variables were studied in a multivariate analysis. Results: After treatment, 23% of the ears were under consideration for hearing aids because of therapy. Twenty-two percent of the patients developed an increase in air-bone gap >10 dB during or after therapy. In the multivariate explanatory analysis, cumulative dose of cisplatin and radiation therapy, and young age displayed a causal relationship with increased sensorineural hearing loss during and after therapy ( p < 0.001). In the multivariate prediction analysis, pretreatment hearing level of the concerning ear was identified as an independent predictive factor for hearing capability after therapy ( p < 0.0001). Conclusions: Both cisplatin and radiation therapy were proven to induce sensorineural hearing loss, in this study with short-term follow-up. Of all patient and treatment variables studied, the patients pretreatment hearing level appeared to be the main predictive factor for hearing capability after high-dose intra-arterial cisplatin chemoradiation.