ABSTRACT
Background: Tongue cancer is the most common cancer in oral cavity and often occurs in men over 50 years of age. Although it can be detected early, most patients have late diagnosis and treatment. Objectives: Remark on various clinical characteristics and treatment result of mobile tongue cancer at K Hospital from 1994 to 2004. Subjects and method: A prospective study was carried out on 290 patients with mobile tongue cancer treated in K Hospital between 1994 and 2004. Results: Among the 290 patients, there were 102 women and 170 men, the male/female ratio = 1.4:1. Cancer of the tongue was most seen at the age of 50-69 years old (52.2%). Common initial symptoms were the tumor of the tongue (27.6%) and tongue ulceration (28.3%). 91% of lesions were on the free border of the tongue. 45.9% patients had metastases in local lymph nodes. Most patients were diagnosed at the advance stage (stage III: 43.8%, stage IV: 25.5%). Squamous cell carcinoma accounted for 99.3%. 38.2% of cervical non-palpable nodes were pathological metastases. Surgical treatments and radiotherapy were commonly used (24.1% and 43.1%, respectively). Conclusion: Tongue cancer often metastasized early into cervical lymph nodes. It is required to diagnose at the early stage to improve treatment outcomes.