Efficacy of routine bilateral neck dissection in the management of the N0 neck in T1-T2 unilateral supraglottic cancer

Background. The treatment of the clinically negative (NO) neck in supraglottic laryngeal cancer continues to be an area of controversy. The aim of this study was to analyze the long-term efficacy of routine bilateral neck dissection compared with ipsilateral neck dissection in T1-T2 NO lateral supraglottic carcinomas. Methods. A retrospective review of 108 patients who underwent surgery for T1-T2 supraglottic squamous cell carcinoma was performed. Forty-eight had undergone ipsilateral functional neck dissection, and 60 had undergone bilateral functional neck dissections. None of these patients received adjuvant radiotherapy. Results. No significant differences (p =.78) in regional recurrence were observed between the patients treated with bilateral neck dissection (13%) and those treated with ipsilateral neck dissection (17%), The 5-year survival rates were 73% and 80% for the patients who received a bilateral and ipsilateral neck dissection, respectively (p =.51). Conclusions. This study suggests that routine bilateral neck dissection may not be necessary in the surgical treatment of all supraglottic cancers. (c) 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.