Sparing the Submandibular Gland in Oral Cavity Cancer Treatment
Author Information
Author(s): He Yi-Peng, Zhou Ping, Guan Li-Mei, Wu San-Gang
Primary Institution: First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University
Hypothesis
Is it feasible to spare the submandibular gland during radiotherapy for oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma?
Conclusion
Sparing the submandibular gland during radiotherapy is feasible and SMG involvement is rare in oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma.
Supporting Evidence
- Only 1.3% of patients showed involvement of the submandibular gland.
- The mean dose to the submandibular gland was kept below 39 Gy in all patients.
- Strict imaging and clinical evaluation can help in sparing the submandibular gland during treatment.
Takeaway
Doctors found that it's usually safe to keep the submandibular gland when treating mouth cancer with radiation, and not many patients have problems with it.
Methodology
The study retrospectively analyzed data from 238 patients with oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma who underwent surgical treatment and evaluated the feasibility of sparing the submandibular gland during radiotherapy.
Limitations
The study is retrospective with a relatively small sample size and did not collect data on xerostomia occurrence post-surgery.
Participant Demographics
{"gender_distribution":{"male":154,"female":84},"age_distribution":{"under_50":51,"over_50":187},"tumor_location":{"tongue":155,"buccal_mucosa":45,"floor_of_mouth":19}}
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
Want to read the original?
Access the complete publication on the publisher's website