A CLINICAL STUDY ON CERVICAL LYMPH NODE METASTASIS OF ORAL CANCER

Lee, Dong Soo; KIm, Chin Soo

Abstract

We reviewed the hospital chart, roentgenogram and histopathologic report of 85 patients who had been diagnosed as oral cancer and received surgical excision with cervical lymphadenectomy as a primary treatment at the department of oral and & maxillofacial surgery of Kyungpook university hospital between Jan. 1, 1983 and Dec. 31, 1997. Following results were obtained. 1. The male to female ratio was 2.86 : 1, mean age was 57, and histologic diagnosis of primary tumor was mostly squamous cell carcinoma. 2. In the tongue and lower alveolus as primary sites, above T2 by size with exophytic growth pattern and in the presence of muscular invasion, the cervical lymph node metastasis rate was higher than other groups. 3. In the comparison of diagnostic reliability between clinical palpation and computed omographic scanning(CT), CT was excellent in specificity and accuracy, clinical palpation was excellent in sensitivity, false positive rate was higher in clinical palpation, and false negative rate was similar. 4. In the case of that cervical metastasis was proved pathologically, adjunctive radiation therapy was carried out frequently. In clinical N1 to N3 case, classical radical neck dissection or modified radical neck dissection was usually performed, and in N0 case, selective neck dissection was recently performed in higher rate. The neck recurrence rate was 6.7%.