{Reference Type}: Journal Article {Title}: Total laryngectomy: Surgical morbidity and outcomes - A case series. {Author}: Pantvaidya GH;Raina S;Mondal A;Deshmukh A;Nair D;Pai P;Chaturvedi P;D'Cruz A; {Journal}: Indian J Cancer {Volume}: 54 {Issue}: 4 {Year}: Oct-Dec 2017 {Factor}: 1.397 {DOI}: 10.4103/ijc.IJC_463_17 {Abstract}: BACKGROUND: Total laryngectomy (TL) is a well-established procedure for laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancers. There is an increasing number of TLs done after organ preservation strategies.
OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to report 30-day morbidity and survival outcomes in patients undergoing TL at a tertiary referral center.
METHODS: This was a retrospective review of a prospective database of TL patients operated during 2012-2013.
METHODS: Patient demographics and other data were captured from the database. Surgical complications were graded as per Clavien-Dindo grading system and were also divided into major and minor as per predecided criteria. Recurrence and survival data were computed using Kaplan-Meier survival curves.
RESULTS: A total of 169 patients underwent TL during the study period. About 34% of the patients had received prior radiation therapy. Around 18% of the patients had major complications with a pharyngocutaneous fistula rate of 22.4%. Ninety percent of these were managed conservatively. Though used in a small subset, microvascular reconstruction had the least complication rates. The 3-year disease-free survival and overall survival were 66% and 72%, respectively. There was no difference in survival between per primum and salvage surgery cohorts.
CONCLUSIONS: TL is a safe and oncologically sound procedure in patients with laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancers. A large proportion of patients still undergo TL as a de novo procedure. This denotes that patients still present with locally advanced cancers which are not amenable to organ preservation.