Follow-up of patients after treatment for laryngeal cancer

Autori:

Mario Bilić, Juraj Lukinović, Ozren Vugrinec, Borna Miličić, Lana Kovač Bilić

Sažetak
Praćenje bolesnika s karcinomom grkljana smatra se važnim dijelom postupka njihova liječenja. Glavna je svrha praćenja, osim procjene učinkovitosti terapije i rehabilitacije, rano otkrivanje potencijalnog recidiva i drugoga primarnog tumora. Trenutno i dalje nema točnih smjernica i preporuka temeljenih na konkretnim podatcima o razlikama u preživljenju. Svrha je ovog prikaza sabrati trenutne preporuke i postavke temeljene na recentnim podatcima iz literature te na kliničkom iskustvu naše ustanove. Učinjen je pregled literature o praćenju i rehabilitaciji bolesnika s karcinomom grkljana. Naše su tvrdnje temeljene na kritičkom razmatranju trenutačnih podataka iz literature i kliničke prakse. Procjena stadija karcinoma temeljena je na trenutnoj UICC-ovoj (engl. Union for International Cancer Control) TNM klasifikaciji karcinoma grkljana. Sastavnice praćenja obrađene u ovom prikazu uključuju duljinu praćenja, učestalost i organizaciju pregleda te radiološke pretrage s obzirom na vrstu terapije (kirurška/radioterapija). Jedan od najvažnijih dijelova praćenja jest edukacija bolesnika o prepoznavanju znakova i simptoma potencijalnog recidiva ili drugoga primarnog tumora. Potrebno je provesti opsežne prospektivne i retrospektivne studije kako bi se propisno ocijenilo trenutne preporuke i smjernice o praćenju s obzirom na stope preživljenja.
Summary

Follow-up of laryngeal carcinoma patients is considered to be the important part of their care. The main purpose of follow-up is to early detect potential disease recurrence and second primary tumous, besides assessment of treatment effectiveness and rehabilitation. There is still no definitive guideline based on the data of survival rates, and our aim is to summarize current guidelines and recommendations based on current recommendations and our experience. A review of the literature regarding follow-up and rehabilitation of laryngeal cancer patients was made. Our considerations are based on critical appraisal of the current literature and clinical evidence. Staging is based on the current UICC (Union for International Cancer Control) laryngeal cancer TNM Classification. The parts of follow-up that we discussed in this review include the duration, frequency and setting of the visits, and imaging regarding the mode of treatment (surgery and/or chemoradiotherapy). One of the most important segments of follow-up is patient’s education about potential recurrence or second primary tumor signs and symptoms. Large prospective and retrospective studies remain to be undertaken for the current recommendations and practices to be properly evaluated for survival rates.