Clinical parameters predicting development of pulmonary malignancies in patients treated for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

Abstract

Background As the locoregional control rates in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) have increased, these patients may suffer distant metastasis in a higher proportion of cases. Clinicopathological characteristics allowing prediction of high-risk profile would allow adapting posttreatment surveillance to individual risk. Methods A retrospective review of all patients with HNSCC treated at the Jewish General Hospital, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, between 1999 and 2008 was conducted for this study. Results The study included 428 patients with a mean follow-up of 65 months (±SEM 1.7). Eighty patients (18.6%) developed pulmonary malignancy during follow-up. In multivariate Cox-regression analysis, locoregional failure and current smoking were associated with higher risk of pulmonary malignancy (p