Correlation between tumor regression and survival time after chemotherapy in cancer of the oral cavity
Suba, Z.; Szabó, G.
Orvosi Hetilap 134(33): 1799-1803
1993
ISSN/ISBN: 0030-6002 PMID: 8351145 Document Number: 407492
The examinations were performed on thirty patients with biopsy-confirmed squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity in clinical stage T2-3No-2M0. The aim of the present study was to perform a histological evaluation of the effect of preoperative intra-arterial treatment of surgically removed tumours and to analyse the correlations with the survival of the patients. The tumour regression (R) was evaluated quantitatively on a scale ranging between 1 and 4 points. The evaluation yielded a value of R1 in 8/30 cases (residual tumour was not found histologically). A tumour of microscopic size (R2) was found in 5/30 cases. Partial regression (R3) was established in 12/30 cases, and a slight response (R4) in 5/30 patients. The histologic picture was evaluated qualitatively on the basis of three arbitrarily chosen parameters. Examinations were made on the morphological picture of the residual cancer (C), the inflammatory reaction of the stroma (S) and the demarcation tendency of the tumour (D) and the sum of these values (A). The higher this point score, the poorer the tumour in question responds. Tumours with a score of A3-5 proved to have a very favourable prognosis in contrast with those with a score of A8-9. For the borderline scores of A6-7 the subsequent fate of the patient was decided by the extent of the original tumour and by the occurrence or not metastases. It is noteworthy that, with a comparatively small number of patients, a significant correlation was demonstrated between the survival and the total qualitative point count (A), the S value and the D value.