RESUMO
OBJECTIVE: Vocal cord paralysis (VCP) may be caused by a primary malignancy and associated immune cross-reactivity. We aimed to illuminate underlying causes of VCP and to assess if onconeural antibodies occur in association to VCP as an early predictor of cancer. METHODS: A prospective study was performed in patients with newly diagnosed VCP from 2014 to 2016. All patients underwent fiberoptic laryngoscopy, ultrasound of the neck and computed tomography (CT) of the neck and thorax. Patients with idiopathic VCP underwent neurological examination, positron emission tomography/CT, and serum analysis for onconeural antibodies. All patients were offered a one-year clinical follow-up. RESULTS: In total 53 patients fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Left VCP occurred in 37 (70%), right in 15 (28%), and bilateral in one patient (2%). The cause of VCP was cancer in 27 (51%) patients, of those 15 (56%) had VCP as the primary symptom, including all cases with laryngeal and esophageal cancer. Median time interval between VCP and cancer was 7 days (range 1-30). In 12 (23%) VCP was a secondary symptom. Lung cancer was the most common etiology, 14 of 27 (52%), 12 patients (86%) with non-small cell lung cancer. Idiopathic VCP was diagnosed in 18 (34%) patients, of those nine patients had a neurological examination and were screened for well-known onconeural antibodies, which were not detected. Reactions against Purkinje cell nuclei were seen in three patients, none showed symptoms or signs of cancer at follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: The causes of VCP were described. VCP was frequently the primary symptom, and also occurred as a secondary symptom of cancer. Exclusion of malignancy is important in patients with VCP. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 1b.
RESUMO
OBJECTIVE: To analyze clinical data and possible prognostic factors of patients with primary carcinoma of the parotid gland. STUDY DESIGN: A retrospective study was made of 85 patients with suspected parotid cancer who were admitted to the Center of Head and Neck Oncology at Odense University Hospital (Odense, Denmark) from 1975 to 1994. METHODS: Patient records were retrospectively reviewed and tabulated for relevant clinical parameters. A complete revision of histological examination was performed by the same pathologist and the tumors were classified according to the 1991 international guidelines from the World Health Organization. Five tumors (6%) did not fulfill the criteria of malignancy and were reclassified as benign. In another five cases the assumed primary parotid carcinomas were found to be metastatic disease from cancers of the breast, prostate, skin, and lungs. Ten patients (12%) were excluded from the analysis, leaving 75 individuals for the study. RESULTS: Twenty-four percent of patients were classified as T1, 32% as T2, 15% as T3, and 28% as T4. One patient (1%) was not classifiable (TX). Regional lymph node metastases were found in 17 cases (23%). Two of these were classified as N1 (3%), 2 as N2A (3%) and 13 as N2B (17%). Four patients were registered as not classifiable (NX) (5%). No patients were classified as N3. Distant metastases were found in four patients (5%) (one patient had bone and liver metastases and three patients had lung metastases). Five-year recurrence-free survival of the entire study group was 63%, disease-specific survival was 69%, and crude survival was 52%. In univariate analysis, tumor size, histological appearance, T status, stage, the presence of lymph node metastases, distant metastases, pain, and facial nerve dysfunction had a significant influence on survival. CONCLUSIONS: A thorough histological revision is pivotal in retrospective parotid carcinoma studies, and tumor size; histological appearance; T, N, and M status; stage; facial nerve dysfunction; and pain from the face and/or neck seem to be significant prognostic indicators for patients with primary parotid carcinoma.
