Accelerated fractionation radiotherapy for advanced head and neck cancer

Between 1981 and 1986, 89 patients with advanced head and neck squamous cancer were treated with a continuous accelerated fractionation radiotherapy (AFRT) regimen. Three fractions of 1.80 Gy, 4 h apart, were given on three treatment days per week (Monday, Wednesday, Friday), and the tumour dose was taken to 59.40 Gy in 33 fractions in 24-25 days. Acute mucosal reactions were generally quite severe, but a split was avoided by providing the patient with intensive support, often as an in-patient, until the reactions settled. Late radiation effects have been comparable to those obtained with conventional fractionation. The probability of local-regional control was 47% at 3 years for 69 previously untreated patients, whereas it was only 12% at one year for 20 patients treated for recurrence after radical surgery. Fifty-eight previously untreated patients with tumours arising in the upper aero-digestive tract were analysed in greater detail. The probability of local-regional control at 3 years was 78% for 17 Stage III patients and 15% for 31 Stage IV patients. This schedule of continuous AFRT is feasible and merits further investigation.