[Controlateral laterocervical lymph node metastasis of carcinoma of the larynx with delayed appearance]

The incidence of controlateral metastatic adenopathy appearing in time was studied in a group of 117 patients. These patients were all affected by carcinoma either basically found in or solely limited to one hemilarynx. All had been treated at least three years before by either total laryngectomy or horizontal supraglottic laryngectomy with either functional or radical monolateral ipsilateral neck dissection. Controlateral metastatic adenopathy appeared in 12% of the cases and was more frequently found in vestibular carcinoma (15.3%), in patients with N1 and N3 (20%) and in cases of histologically invasive ipsilateral lymph nodes (31.8%). The following had markedly lower incidence: glottic neoplasm (3%), N0 patients (11.1%) as well as unaffected ipsilateral lymph nodes (9.5%). These observations would suggest a more limited use of bilateral laterocervical lymph node dissection in lateralized N0 laryngeal carcinoma.