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Poor prognosis in patients with stage I and II oral tongue squamous cell carcinoma

  1. Kyle Rusthoven MD,
  2. Ari Ballonoff MD,
  3. David Raben MD,
  4. Changhu Chen MD*

Article first published online: 26 NOV 2007

DOI: 10.1002/cncr.23183

Issue

Cancer

Cancer

Volume 112, Issue 2, pages 345–351, 15 January 2008

Additional Information

How to Cite

Rusthoven, K., Ballonoff, A., Raben, D. and Chen, C. (2008), Poor prognosis in patients with stage I and II oral tongue squamous cell carcinoma. Cancer, 112: 345–351. doi: 10.1002/cncr.23183

Author Information

  1. Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Colorado Denver, Aurora, Colorado

*Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Colorado Denver, 1665 N. Ursula Street, Suite 1032, P.O. Box 6510, Mail Stop F-706, Aurora, CO 80045-0508

Publication History

  1. Issue published online: 4 JAN 2008
  2. Article first published online: 26 NOV 2007
  3. Manuscript Accepted: 20 AUG 2007
  4. Manuscript Revised: 4 AUG 2007
  5. Manuscript Received: 27 JUN 2007

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Keywords:

  • oral tongue cancer;
  • oral cavity cancer;
  • head and neck cancer;
  • prognosis

Abstract

BACKGROUND

The objective of this study was to compare survival in patients with squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the oral tongue with that in patients with SCC in other oral cavity subsites.

METHODS

Patients with stage I and II (T1-T2N0M0) SCC of the oral cavity diagnosed between 1988 and 2004 were queried by using the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database. The log-rank test was used to compare the overall survival (OS) and cause-specific survival (CSS) of patients who had oral tongue SCC with those of patients who had SCC of other oral cavity subsites. A Cox proportional hazards multivariate analysis was performed to evaluate the influence of covariates on the risk of CSS and OS.

RESULTS

Between 1988 and 2004, 6791 patients with stage I and II SCC of the oral cavity were identified. Among them, 40% had oral tongue SCC, and 60% had SCC of other oral cavity subsites. The median patient age was 64 years. The 5-year OS and CSS rates were 60.9% and 83.5%, respectively, for patients with oral tongue SCC versus 64.7% and 94.1%, respectively, for patients with SCC of other oral cavity subsites (OS: hazard ratio, 1.24; P < .0001; CSS: hazard ratio, 3.04; P < .0001). On multivariate analysis, OS and CSS were influenced significantly by T classification, age, sex, and oral tongue subsite. The CSS for patients who had stage I and II oral tongue SCC also was unfavorable compared with the CSS for stage-matched patients who had SCC of other head and neck sites.

CONCLUSIONS

Oral tongue SCC was associated with poor survival compared with other oral cavity and head and neck sites. These data suggested a potential benefit for multimodality therapy in this cohort of patients. Cancer 2008. © 2007 American Cancer Society.

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