A survey of head and neck malignancy at Tokai University Hospital

Patients with head and neck malignancy who visited Tokai University Hospital over seven years were statistically surveyed. Six hundred and eighty-three patients were newly registered in this period. The most frequent primary lesion was the larynx (29.3%), followed by the hypopharynx (20.6%), oral cavity (11.9%), oropharynx (11.9%), and nose and paranasal sinus (8.6%). About two-thirds of the patients had advanced cancers. The patients were referred from adjacent regions, most frequently from the Shonan area. Referred patients with malignancy were increasing each year. The trends in head and neck cancers and the treatment modality were discussed. After the opening of a new hospital building in 2006, a further increase in the number of referred patients and operations is expected.