Tumores avanzados de cabeza y cuello: resección total y reconstrucción con colgajos libres y pegamentos biológicos

Los pacientes con cáncer avanzado y recurrente de la piel de la cabeza y el cuello requieren agresivos y prolongados procedimientos, además de padecer una elevada morbilidad, para alcanzar márgenes seguros de curación oncológica. Se trataron once pacientes, 7 con carcinomas de células escamosas, 3 con carcinomas de células basales y 1 Schwanoma maligno, con una combinación de craniotomía, cirugía basal craneal y abordaje craneofacial para reconstruir extensos defectos utilizando colgajos libres musculares y cutáneos en una intervención. Grasa, músculo y 1 mm de una capa epidural de un adhesivo biológico (Bioglue) se usaron para sellar suturas durales y obliterar potenciales espacios muertos. No hubo reacciones adversas al adhesivo biológico y ningún paciente presentó otras complicaciones. De los once pacientes, 3 fallecieron por complicaciones médicas: embolismo pulmonar, mielodisplasia tardía e infarto del miocardio. Para el momento de nuestro seguimiento (9-58 meses) ningún paciente ha presentado recurrencias o metástasis distales

Patients with advanced and recurrent head and neck skin cancer need aggressive and prolonged reconstructive procedures, besides suffering high morbidity, to get safe margins of oncology healing. We treated eleven patients, 7 with squamous cell carcinomas, 3 with basal cell carcinomas and 1 malignant Schwanoma, by a combination of craniotomy, basal cranium, surgery and cra-niofacial boarding to reconstruct extensive defects using free muscular and skin flaps in one intervention. Fat, muscle and 1 mm ipidural biological adhesive layer (Bioglue) was used to seal dural sutures and obliterate potential dead spaces. There were no adverse reactions to the biological adhesive and no patients presented other complications. Out of the eleven patients 3 died due to medical complications: lung embolism, late mielodisplasia and myocardial infarction. After 9-58 months follow up none of the patients have presented with recurrent or distal metastasis

Morbilidad y mortalidad por cáncer oral y faríngeo en Chile / Morbidity and mortality for oral and pharyngeal cancer in Chile

Background: Most oral cancers are squamous cell carcinomas (90%) which are two to four times more common in men than in women. The reasons for these differences are associated with exposure to factors such as tobacco and alcohol. Age is also considered as a risk factor (about 90% of the cases are diagnosed after 45 years of age). Aim: To analyze the frequency of oral cavity cancer during the last years in Chile. Material and methods: Mortality rates were obtained from death records of the "Instituto Nacional de Estadísticas" and publications of the World Health Organization, from 1955 to 2002. Morbidity from 1969 to 2002 was obtained from hospital discharge records of the Chilean Ministry of Health. Results: Oral cancer corresponded to 1.6% of total cancer cases in Chile, with a male:female ratio of 2.3 to 1. Deaths due to oral cancer was 1% of all cancer deaths, with a male:female ratio of 2.8 to 1. The morbidity rate for both genders increased while the mortality rate was relatively constant. However, we observed an increase in the mortality rate among women from 1980 to 2002, associated with more than 100% increase in the frecuency of smoking, between 1970 and 1998. The most common anatomical location was the tongue. Conclusions: The incidences of oral cancer is increasing in Chilean women, but men are more commonly affected.