Function Preservation in Head and Neck Cancers

The treatment of head and neck cancers can have a significant impact on function and appearance, which results in impairment of quality of life. Various long-term sequelae of treatment include speech and swallowing difficulty, oral incompetence, trismus, xerostomia, dental caries and osteoradionecrosis. Management has evolved from single modality treatment of either surgery or radiation to multimodality treatment to attain acceptable functional outcomes. Brachytherapy, also known as interventional radiotherapy, with its ability to deliver high doses centrally to the target, has been shown to improve local control rates. Due to the rapid fall-off of the dose of brachytherapy there is better organ at risk sparing as compared with that of external beam radiotherapy. In the head and neck region, brachytherapy has been practiced in various sites, including the oral cavity, oropharynx, nasopharynx, nasal vestibule and paranasal sinuses. Additionally, brachytherapy has also been considered for reirradiation as a salvage. Brachytherapy can also be considered as a perioperative technique together with surgery. Close multidisciplinary cooperation is required for a successful brachytherapy programme. In oral cavity cancers, depending on the location of the tumour, brachytherapy has been shown to preserve oral competence, maintain tongue mobility, maintain speech, swallowing and the hard palate. Brachytherapy in oropharyngeal cancers has been shown to reduce xerostomia and also reduce dysphagia and aspiration post-radiation therapy. For the nasopharynx, paranasal sinus and nasal vestibule, brachytherapy preserves the respiratory function of the mucosa. Despite such an incomparable impact on function and organ preservation, brachytherapy is an underutilised technique for head and neck cancers. There is a strong need to improve brachytherapy utilisation in head and neck cancers.