[Induction chemotherapy for head and neck epidermoid carcinomas]

The standard treatment for head and neck inoperable squamous cell carcinoma is an association of radiotherapy and platinum. However, only one patient out of three remains alive five years after diagnosis. The interest in induction chemotherapy was renewed by the introduction of taxanes combined with cisplatinum and 5-fluoro-uracile. The triple association taxane-cisplatinum-5-fluoro-uracile yielded improved survival when compared to cisplatinum-5-fluoro-uracile. Wider use of taxane-cisplatinum-5-fluoro-uracile is limited by its toxicity and the lack of randomized comparison with a concomitant chemoradiotherapy scheme including optimal doses of platinum. Until the results of new phase III trials are published, the choice between induction chemotherapy followed by concomitant chemoradiotherapy or concomitant chemoradiotherapy alone has to be made on an individualized basis, taking into account the patient's medical condition, the ability of the medical team to deal with intensive treatment regimens, and the clinical/pathological characteristics of the tumour.