OBJECTIVE: Transoral laser microsurgery (TLMS) and radiotherapy (XRT) are mainstays of treatment for early glottic carcinoma (EGC). Here, we investigated case-dependent provider treatment preferences and identify factors which impact decision-making in EGC.
METHODS: This cross-sectional survey of laryngologists, head-and-neck surgeons, and radiation oncologists presented five diagrammatic cases of progressively advanced EGC (T1/2, N0). Respondents indicated preference for TLMS or XRT and ranked factors which influenced their recommendation for each case. Analysis utilized descriptive statistics, Fischer\'s exact tests, and Kruskal-Wallis tests for nonparametric data.
RESULTS: A total of 141 complete responses (69.5% laryngologists) were received. Most respondents practiced in academic settings (93.5%) and within multidisciplinary teams (94.0%). Anterior commissure involvement was the most important a priori tumor factor for case-independent treatment recommendation (Likert Scale: 4.22/5), followed by Laterality (Likert Scale: 4.02/5). Across all specialties, TLMS was recommended for unilateral T1a lesions. Laryngologists continued recommending TLMS in T2 lesions (41.0%) more than head-and-neck surgeons (5.0%) and radiation oncologists (0.0%). Across all cases, survival and voice outcomes were the most important clinical factors impacting treatment decisions. Radiation oncologists weighed voice more heavily than laryngologists in more complex presentations of EGC (rank: 1.6 vs. 2.7, Kruskall-Wallis: p < 0.05).
CONCLUSIONS: In more complex clinical presentations of EGC, preference for TLMS compared to XRT differed across specialists, despite similar rankings of factors driving these treatment recommendations. This may be driven by differing experiences and viewpoints on case-dependent voice outcomes following TLMS versus XRT, suggesting a need for increased understanding of how tumor location and depth impact voice outcomes.
METHODS: 5 Laryngoscope, 134:3686-3694, 2024.

OBJECTIVE: Describe recent national trends in overall treatment modalities for T1 glottic squamous cell carcinomas (SCC), and identify factors associated with treatment regimens.
METHODS: National Cancer Database from 2004-2020 was queried for all patients with glottic cT1N0M0 SCC. Treatment patterns over time were analyzed using the Cochran-Armitage test for trend. Multivariable logistic regressions were used to determine the factors associated with treatment regimens.
RESULTS: Of the 22,414 patients identified, most patients received RT only (57%), 21% received surgery only, and 22% received dual-modality treatment (\"over-treatment\"). Over the time period, there was a decreasing trend in rates of over-treatment for T1 glottic SCC (p < 0.001) and an increasing trend in surgery only (p < 0.001). Treatment in 2016-2018 (OR: 1.168 [1.004 to 1.359]), 2013-2015 (OR: 1.419 [1.221 to 1.648]), 2010-2012 (OR: 1.611 [1.388 to 1.871]), 2007-2009 (OR: 1.682 [1.450 to 1.951]), or 2004-2006 (OR: 1.795 [1.548 to 2.081]) versus 2019-2020 was associated with greater likelihood of over-treatment. T1b tumors were less likely to be over-treated (OR: 0.795 [0.707 to 0.894]) versus T1a tumors, and less likely to receive surgery first (OR: 0.536 [0.485 to 0.592]) versus T1a tumors.
CONCLUSIONS: Over-treatment for T1 glottic SCC has been declining, with increasing rates of surgery only. Year of treatment was significantly associated with the receipt of dual-modality treatment. Finally, patients with T1b disease were more likely to receive RT as the first and only treatment.
METHODS: 3 Laryngoscope, 134:3633-3644, 2024.

UNASSIGNED: The current literature provides limited guidance on the management of positive margins (PMs) following transoral laser microsurgery (TLM) for glottic squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). Long-term data exploring the treatment of PMs with both initial observation and re-resection are limited. Our objective was to determine the optimal treatment for PM patients following TLM for glottic SCC.
UNASSIGNED: Clinical information on glottic SCC patients with PMs following treatment with TLM was prospectively collected at our institution from 2007 to 2018. We use a laryngeal template during the initial TLM where the area of resection is outlined for future reference. Data were compared with univariate analysis and survival plots were generated using the Kaplan-Meier method.
UNASSIGNED: A total of 29 patients with PMs were treated with either re-resection (19 patients), close observation (6 patients), or adjuvant radiation alone (4 patients). Re-resection patients had SCC or severe dysplasia on initial margin pathology and 23% with early-stage disease had recurrence (T1-T2). Five (83%) patients who underwent close observation required re-resection based on clinical suspicion of recurrence (confirmed on final pathology), which was significantly different from the re-resection patients (p < .05). Close observation was therefore discontinued as a management of PMs. Four patients (21%) had no residual malignancy on re-resection specimens. Deep margins only accounted for 17% of all PMs. Disease-specific survival for all PM patients at 5 years was 82.4% (SE 9.6%, CI 53.4%-91.6%).
UNASSIGNED: Our long-term experience with treating early-stage glottic SCC with TLM supports re-resection as an appropriate management for cases of PMs.
UNASSIGNED: 4.

OBJECTIVE: Laser cordectomy is a widely accepted treatment modality for selected cases of early glottic cancers, but its role as a salvage treatment remains unclear. We aimed to investigate the oncological outcomes and failure patterns of salvage cordectomy.
METHODS: This was a retrospective cohort study of patients who underwent cordectomy for early glottic cancer between 2013 and 2022 at a tertiary referral center. The main outcome measures were overall survival, larynx-preservation rate, tracheostomy dependency rate, and disease-free survival.
RESULTS: A total of 142 patients (mean age: 63 years, interquartile range [IQR]: 45-72, 123[86.9 %] males) were analyzed. There were 38 (26.8 %) recurrences after a mean of 22 months (IQR: 17-26). Among them, 25 (17.6 %) underwent salvage cordectomy, while 13 (9.1 %) received other salvage treatments (11[7.7 %] (chemo)radiotherapy and 2[1.4 %] total laryngectomy). In comparison to the other salvage treatments, salvage cordectomy demonstrated lower tracheostomy rates (0 vs. 31 %, p = 0.05), comparable 5-year disease-free survival (62 % vs. 54 %, p = 0.4), higher 5-year larynx preservation rate (92 % vs. 54 %, p = 0.02), and improved 5-year overall survival rate (84 % vs. 62 %, p = 0.01). Factors associated with salvage cordectomy failure were age >60 years (odds ratio [OR]: 1.3, 95 % confidence interval [CI]: 1.15-1.53), smoking continuation (OR: 3.73, 95 % CI: 3.5-4.4), heavy smoking (OR: 1.24, 95 % CI:1.07-2.15), and pT1b + (OR: 2.26, 95 % CI: 2.1-2.9).
CONCLUSIONS: Salvage cordectomy offers favorable larynx preservation rates and oncological outcomes for recurrent disease amenable to conservative surgery. Smoking, advanced age, and advanced tumor stages are associated with salvage cordectomy failure.

The choice between radiotherapy (RT) and CO2 laser surgery (CO2-LS) for early glottic cancer remains controversial. We systematically examined electronic databases in order to identify prospective trials comparing patients who had undergone CO2-LS or RT to treat early glottic cancer. Eleven studies involving 1053 patients were included. In the selected literature, the parameter setting of CO2 laser equipment can be summarized as wavelength 10.6 µm, superpulsed mode, continuous setting, power tailored on target structures (1-3 W for subtle resections and 4-15 W for cutting a larger tumor), and approximately 2080-3900 W/cm2 of laser energy. Using RevMan 5.3, we estimated pooled odds ratios (ORs) for dichotomous variables and pooled mean differences (MDs) for continuous variables, along with associated 95% confidence intervals (CIs). The heterogeneity in the treatment variables was measured using Higgins\' inconsistency test and expressed as I2 values. The continuous variables were then depicted as histograms developed using PlotDigitizer 2.6.8. Compared to patients treated with CO2-LS, those treated with RT had better jitter (MD 1.27%, 95% CI 1.21 ~ 1.32, P < 0.001), and high scores on the \"Grade (MD 6.54, 95% CI 5.31 ~ 7.76, P < 0.001), Breathiness (MD 9.08, 95% CI 4.02 ~ 14.13, P < 0.001), Asthenia (MD 2.13, 95% CI 0.29 ~ 3.98, P = 0.02), and Strain (MD 3.32, 95% CI 0.57 ~ 6.07, P = 0.02)\" scale. Patients treated with CO2-LS had worse local control rates (OR 3.14, 95% CI 1.52 ~ 6.48, P = 0.002) while lower incidence of second primary tumor (OR 0.30, 95% CI 0.15 ~ 0.61, P < 0.001). It is hoped that retrospective analysis can provide suggestions for early glottis patients to choose personalized treatment.

OBJECTIVE: We previously reported the primary results of JCOG0701, a randomized, multicenter, phase 3, noninferiority trial comparing accelerated fractionation (Ax) to standard fractionation (SF) for early glottic cancer. In the primary results, although the similar efficacy of 3-year progression-free survival and toxicity of Ax compared with SF was observed, the noninferiority of Ax was not confirmed statistically. To evaluate the long-term follow-up results of JCOG0701, we conducted JCOG0701A3 as an ancillary study of JCOG0701.
METHODS: In JCOG0701, 370 patients were randomly assigned to receive SF of 66 to 70 Gy (33-35 fractions; n = 184) or Ax of 60 to 64.8 Gy (25-27 fractions; n = 186). The data cutoff date for this analysis was in June 2020. Overall survival, progression-free survival, and late adverse events including central nervous system ischemia were analyzed.
RESULTS: With a median follow-up period of 7.1 years (range, 0.1-12.4), progression-free survival of the SF and Ax arms were 76.2% and 78.2% at 5 years and 72.7% and 74.8% at 7 years (P = .44). OS of the SF and Ax arms were 92.7% and 89.6% at 5 years and 90.8% and 86.5% at 7 years (P = .92). Among 366 patients with a protocol treatment, the cumulative incidence of late adverse events of the SF and Ax arms were 11.9% and 7.4% at 8 years (hazard ratio, 0.53; 95% CI, 0.28-1.01; P = .06). Central nervous system ischemia of grade 2 or higher was observed in 4.1% for the SF arm and 1.1% for the Ax arm (P = .098).
CONCLUSIONS: After long-term follow-up, Ax showed comparable efficacy to SF and a tendency for better safety. Ax may be suitable for early glottic cancer because of its convenience in minimizing treatment time, cost, and labor.

BACKGROUND: This study aims to evaluate whether hypofractionated radiotherapy (HYPOFRT) is a cost-effective strategy than conventional fractionated radiotherapy (CFRT) for early-stage glottic cancer (ESGC) in the Brazilian public and private health systems.
METHODS: Adopting the perspective of the Brazilian public and private health system as the payer, a Markov model with a lifetime horizon was built to delineate the health states for a cohort of 65-year-old men after with ESGC treated with either HYPOFRT or CFRT. Probabilities of controlled disease, local failure, distant metastasis, and death and utilities scores were extracted from randomized clinical trials. Costs were based on the public and private health system reimbursement values.
RESULTS: In the base case scenario, for both the public and private health systems, HYPOFRT dominated CFRT, being more effective and less costly, with a negative ICER of R$264.32 per quality-adjusted life-year (QALY) (public health system) and a negative ICER of R$2870.69/ QALY (private health system). The ICER was most sensitive to the probability of local failure, controlled disease, and salvage treatment costs. For the probabilistic sensitivity analysis, the cost-effectiveness acceptability curve indicates that there is a probability of 99.99% of HYPOFRT being cost-effective considering a willingness-to-pay threshold of R$2,000 ($905.39) per QALY (public sector) and willingness-to-pay threshold of R$16,000 ($7243.10) per QALY (private sector). The results were robust in deterministic and probabilistic sensitivity analyses.
CONCLUSIONS: Considering a threshold of R$ 40,000 per QALY, HYPOFRT was cost-effective compared to CFRT for ESGC in the Brazilian public health system. The Net Monetary Benefit (NMB) is approximately 2,4 times (public health system) and 5,2 (private health system) higher for HYPOFRT than CFRT, which could open the opportunity of incorporating new technologies.

The incidence of all head and neck malignancies is rising worldwide, with carcinoma of the larynx constituting approximately 1% of all cancers. Early glottic cancer responds quite favorably to surgical intervention due to its early presentation, coupled with the low rate of regional and distant metastases. This article focuses on various approaches to the surgical treatment of early glottic cancer. Details include the clinical and radiological evaluation of laryngeal cancer, the goals of treatment, current surgical options for early disease, approach to surgical resection margins and management of nodal disease, and complications associated with each treatment modality.

BACKGROUND: The present study analyzed the impact of margin status on local control and survival, and the management of close/positive margins after transoral CO2 laser microsurgery for early glottic carcinoma.
METHODS: 351 patients (328 males, 23 females, mean age 65.6 years) underwent surgery. We identified the following margin statuses: negative, close superficial (CS), close deep (CD), positive single superficial (SS), positive multiple superficial (MS), and positive deep (DEEP).
RESULTS: A total of 286 patients (81.5%) had negative margins, 23 (6.5%) had close margins (8 CS, 15 CD) and 42 (12%) had positive margins (16 SS, 9 MS, 17 DEEP). Among the 65 patients with close/positive margins, 44 patients underwent enlargement, 6 radiotherapy and 15 follow-up. Twenty-two patients (6.3%) recurred. Patients with DEEP or CD margins showed a higher risk of recurrence (hazard ratios of 2.863 and 2.537, respectively), compared to patients with negative margins. Local control with laser alone, overall laryngeal preservation and disease-specific survival decreased significantly in patients with DEEP margins (57.5%, 86.9% and 92.9%, p < 0.05).
CONCLUSIONS: Patients with CS or SS margins could be safely submitted to follow-up. In the case of CD and MS margins, any additional treatment should be discussed with the patient. In the case of DEEP margin, additional treatment is always recommended.

Assessing whether the additional use of narrow-band imaging (NBI) in transoral laser surgery (TOLS) for early laryngeal cancer improves clinical outcomes.
Randomized controlled trial, performed between September 2015 and November 2022.
A tertiary referral hospital in The Netherlands.
TOLS was carried out in 113 patients. The procedure was performed with white light imaging (WLI, n = 56) alone, or combined with NBI (n = 57). Patients received frequent follow-up laryngoscopy. Resection margin status, recurrence rate, and recurrence-free survival at 12 months, 18 months, and after study termination (maximum 86 months) were analyzed.
Thirty-one cases in the WLI group had a positive resection margin, versus 16 in the NBI group (p = .002). After 12 months, the recurrence-free survival was 92%: 87% for WLI versus 96% for NBI, p = .07. The recurrence rate was 7/56 (13%) for WLI, versus 2/57 (4%) for NBI, p = .09. After 18 months, the recurrence-free survival was 84% for WLI versus 96% for NBI, p = .02. The recurrence rate was 9/56 (16%) for WLI, versus 2/57 (4%) for NBI, p = .02. After study termination, the recurrence-free survival was 71% for WLI versus 83% for the NBI group (p = .08). The recurrence rate was 16/56 for WLI, versus 10/57 for NBI (p = .16).
The additional use of NBI during TOLS significantly decreased the number of positive resection margins. Although not statistically significant at all time points, patients treated with NBI-supported TOLS showed a lower recurrence rate and better recurrence-free survival. Further studies in larger patient groups are needed to confirm these results.