Voice-Related Quality of Life after Treatment for Laryngeal Cancer

Abstract

There are many methods of treating laryngeal cancers: definitive irradiation with or without concurrent chemotherapy, endoscopic laser surgery, partial surgery techniques, and total laryngectomy. Few studies have been reported on vocal function and quality of life of patients after the definitive treatment for laryngeal cancer, using single voice related QOL measures. The aim of this study was to examine voice related QOL in patients treated with various modalities using a Voice-Related Quality of Life (V-RQOL) questionnaire as well as Voice Handicap Index-10 (VHI-10) questionnaire. Between August 2006 and May 2007, survey data on voice utilizing the V-RQOL and VHI-10 were obtained from a total of 130 patients who had received definitive treatment for laryngeal cancers with follow-up at the Hokkaido University Hospital, and who were alive with no evidence of malignancy at the time of survey. Mean V-RQOL scores of the patients who received radiation therapy (n=63), chemoradiotherapy (n=29), laser resection (n=14) and total laryngectomy (n=27) as the final treatment for laryngeal cancer were 92.6, 92.9, 85.5, and 68.4, respectively. Mean VHI-10 values were 2.87, 2.34, 5.43, and 11.26. Such measures of quality of life are important endpoints to help judge the overall effectiveness of treatment options for laryngeal cancers. © 2007, Japan Society for Head and Neck Cancer. All rights reserved.