Computed tomographic findings of nasopharyngeal carcinoma with skull base and intracranial involvement

Twenty-nine patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) with skull base or intracranial involvement were analyzed by high-resolution computed tomography (CT). We divided the path of the primary tumor spread into six directions from the nasopharynx. The most common direction of spread was the anterior region, and the second most common was the posterolateral region. Recently, high resolution CT has been used for the diagnosis of the nasopharynx. T-staging of NPC was made according to the International Union Against Cancer (UICC) TNM classification system, depending on clinical findings and conventional radiograph examinations (not including CT). CT images were valuable for detection of the primary tumor involvement of the skull base region in NPC. Furthermore, bone target CT images were better for searching for subtle bony changes. Therefore, we recommend that CT should be used in T-staging of NPC systematically. When CT is used as one of the staging criteria, some patients with NPC with subtle bony changes will be upstaged.