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Published on: April 20, 2018
Sarcopenia and its impact in head and neck cancer treatment
Remco de Bree1, Maartje A van Beers, Anouk W M A Schaeffers
1Department of Head and Neck Surgical Oncology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
Purpose Of Review:
The aim of this review is to discuss recent studies on the assessment of sarcopenia and its predictive and prognostic value in head and neck cancer (HNC) patients.
Recent Findings:
There is increasing evidence that low skeletal muscle mass (SMM), often named sarcopenia, can easily be assessed on cross-sectional imaging of the head and neck and is associated with chemotherapy (dose limiting) and radiotherapy toxicity and survival.
Summary:
SMM measurement at the level of the third cervical vertebra (C3) on routine computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging is easy and robust to perform. Several studies have shown a significantly higher incidence of cisplatin dose limiting toxicity in HNC patients with a low SMM. In HNC patients pretreatment low SMM is associated with acute and late toxicity and adverse events of radiotherapy, complications of major head and neck surgery and decreased disease-specific and overall survival. This information can be used for individualized treatment planning in HNC patients with low SMM.
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