Chemo-radiotherapy for locally advanced head and neck cancer - Long-term results of a phase II trial

The feasibility and effectiveness of a combined chemo-radiotherapy treatment modality for locally advanced head and neck cancer was tested in a phase II trial. Between 1990 and 1993, 74 patients (20 female/54 male) with head and neck cancer stage III (n = 12) and IV (n = 62) were treated with accelerated radiotherapy (72 Gy) and simultaneous chemotherapy (5-FU, folinic acid, mitomycin C). The median follow-up time was 43 months (1-72). Complete remission (CR) was absent in 76% (56/74) of patients and, after subsequent resection of residual lymph nodes, another 8 patients achieved CR. The cumulative local control rate was 72% and disease-specific survival rate was 59% at 4 years. Two patients died with treatment-related conditions (pancytopenia, larynx oedema). By multivariate analysis, only lymph node status was an independent parameter for local control (P = 0.04). This treatment was feasible and toxicity was not a treatment-limiting factor. As a consequence, a German multicentre phase III trial was initiated in 1995. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd.