Analysis of Treatment in the Patients with Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma of the Head and Neck / 대한이비인후과학회지

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma(NHL) of the head and neck was treated with radiotherapy traditionally, but the results were not satisfactory. Although chemotherapy or combined chemotherapy and radiotherapy was tried recently, prognostic factors and treatment of choice has not been described yet. OBJECTIVES: We performed this study to investigate the prognostic factors of NHL and the differences of treatment outcomes among chemotherapy, radiotherapy and combined therapy for NHL of the head and neck. MATERIALS AND METHOD: The subjects are 50 patients with NHL localized in the head and neck, who were treated at Kosin University Gospel Hospital from January 1988 to January 1996. We analyzed clinical datas retrospectively. RESULTS: Five year overall survival rate was 41% in the patients whose primary lesion was Waldeyer's ring and 78.3% in patients who present with primary lesion in cervical node(p<0.05). Five year overall survival rate of chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and combined therapy was 50.8%, 20%, 77% respectively(statistically not significant). These results suggest that location of primary site, pathologic type and response rate to treatment may be significant prognostic factors on univariate analysis(p<0.05). CONCLUSION: Combined chemotherapy and radiation therapy are more effective for the patients with NHL presenting in the head and neck.