Ultrasound in patients with treated head and neck carcinomas: A retrospective analysis for effectiveness of follow-up care

Correct follow-up is necessary to avoid under- or overtreatment in the care of patients with treated carcinomas of head and neck. Ultrasound is a cost-effective, harmless, easy, and feasible method. It can be applied in the outpatient clinic in follow-up but the United Kingdom National Multidisciplinary guidelines are recommended computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging for the detection of metastasis for head and neck carcinomas in the follow-up period. The purpose of the study was to state that neck ultrasound would be the method of choice on follow-up care of Chinese patients who received primary treatment for carcinoma of head and neck. Patients who received primary treatment for carcinoma of the head and neck were examined for 5-years in follow-up through physical, clinical, and neck ultrasound (n = 198). If patients had no evidence of disease after 60 months of definitive therapy considered as a cure. If patients had no evidence of disease after 36 months of salvage therapy considered as a cure of recurrence. Irrespective of definitive treatment used, the study was monitored through neck ultrasound during 5 years of a follow-up visit and was reported cure in 126 (64%) patients and recurrence in 72 (36%; distant metastasis: 33 [17%], local recurrence: 24 [12%], and regional recurrence: 15 [7%]) patients. Primary tumor stage IV, III, II, and I had 63% (15/24), 51% (21/41), 32% (18/56), and 23% (18/77) recurrence, respectively. The time to detect regional recurrence was shorter than that for local recurrence (P < .0001, q = 15.059) and distant recurrence (P < .0001, q = 7.958). Local recurrence and stage I primary tumor had the highest percentage cure for recurrence. Neck ultrasound in the follow-up period is reported to be effective for the detection of recurrence of patients who received primary treatment for carcinoma of head and neck especially regional recurrence and primary tumor stage I. Level of Evidence: III.