The pathology of neck dissection in cancer of the larynx

Cancer of the larynx is a common problem in a head and neck oncological surgical practice; as such, pathology departments supporting such surgical practices will examine cervical lymph node dissection specimens with some frequency. Issues to be settled among pathologists and surgeons include--How precise an anatomic dissection of the specimen is called for? What histological features of the specimen will be of most use to the clinicians who are devising a course of postoperative therapy for the patient? What sorts of methods are needed to identify the maximum number of micrometastases which may be lurking within the lymph nodes of the specimen? Is there a role for routine application of special techniques--such as immunohistochemistry or molecular biology--in the analysis of these specimens? While the answers to these questions are likely to vary somewhat from one center to another, patients are best served when these questions are discussed amongst the respective physicians before surgical procedures are undertaken, rather than after the fact.