[Functional and oncological outcomes of surgical treatment of outer ear skin cancer].

Results of the surgical treatment of external ear skin cancer in 71 patients are evaluated. Based on the TNM classification, the patients were allocated to the following groups: T1 - 25 (35.2%) patients, T2 - 23 (32.4%) patients, T3 - 11 (15.5%), T4 - 12 (16.9%) patients. Eight patients underwent total removal of the auricle and 26 ones its resection. Extensive resection of the tumour in 36 patients was immediately followed by plastic reconstruction of the resulting defect on the outer ear with the use of the following graft varieties: rotation cutaneous flap (n=22), composite musculocutaneous flap vascularized by a. thoracoabdominalis (n=2), and free full-thickness cutaneous flap (n=4); Trendelenburg operation was performed in 8 patients. Clinical efficiency of the new method for the reconstruction of the defect in the initial portion of the external auditory canal using rotation cellulocutaneous postaural flap was evaluated. It is concluded that surgical treatment of external ear malignant tumours results in rather a high frequency of postoperative wound healing by first intention (91.5%). The post-surgery recurrence rate of outer ear skin cancer amounts to 7% with the highest percentage among the patients of groups T3 and T4. It is concluded that the proposed method for the reconstruction of the defect in the initial portion of the external auditory canal yields good functional and aesthetic outcome.