Organ Preserving Transoral Laser Microsurgery for Cancer of the Hypopharynx

Objective: To assess the feasibility of transoral laser microsurgery (TLM) in the treatment of hypopharyngeal cancer, with a special focus on piriform sinus carcinomas, and to report the oncologic and functional outcomes. Study Design: Prospective case‐series study at a single institute, an academic tertiary referral center. Methods: A total of 172 patients with previously untreated squamous cell carcinoma of the hypopharynx were eligible for this study (1986–2003). The piriform sinus was the most common localization (n = 150). Patients with simultaneous second primaries, distant metastases, or N3 neck disease and cancers of the category pT4b were excluded. Fifteen percent of the patients had stages I and II (according to guidelines from the Union Internationale Contre le Cancer 2002/American Joint Commission on Cancer, 2002), and 85% had stages III and IVa. The median follow‐up period was 45 months. All patients (n = 172) were treated by TLM, mainly by selective neck dissection (93%) and/or postoperative radiotherapy (52%). Overall survival, recurrence‐free survival, organ preservation, and local control were analyzed as end points. Rate of tracheotomies, postoperative complications, and swallowing function (feeding tube dependency) were also analyzed. Results: Five‐year Kaplan‐Meier local control was 84% for pT1; 70% for pT2; 75% for pT3; and 57% for pT4a. Five‐year Kaplan‐Meier recurrence‐free survival was 73% for stages I and II, 59% for stage III, and 47% for stage IVa. The whole group of 172 hypopharyngeal cancer patients was analyzed, with an additional special focus on the homogenous group of piriform sinus carcinomas (n = 150). Conclusions: Our data support the conclusion that TLM is a valid option to standard radical surgery or standard conservation treatment. Oncologic and functional results compare favorably, while morbidity and complication rates tend to be lower.