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Laryngeal Cancer Survival in Northern United Kingdom: A Multi-Centre Retrospective Observational Study
Amar Rajgor1,2, Rhona Hurley3,4,5, Catriona M Douglas3,4,5
1National Institute for Health & Care Research Doctoral Fellow in Otolaryngology, Population Health Sciences Institute, Newcastle University, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, UK.
Objectives:
Laryngeal cancer incidence has risen globally, yet survival outcomes have shown limited improvement over recent decades. This study evaluated contemporary outcomes across multiple centres in Northern UK and examined stage- and treatment-specific survival.
Design:
Multi-centre retrospective observational study.
Setting And Participants:
Data were collected for 2028 patients with biopsy-proven squamous cell carcinoma of the larynx treated with curative intent between 2015 and 2021 across six tertiary head and neck cancer centres (Newcastle, Glasgow, Liverpool, Sheffield, Leeds, and Middlesbrough).
Main Outcome Measures:
Overall survival (OS) and disease-specific survival (DSS) were estimated using Kaplan-Meier analysis and compared using log-rank testing.
Results:
Median follow-up was 40 months (mean age 66.8 years; 81% male). Overall mortality was 41% and disease-specific mortality 20%. Five-year OS declined with advancing stage: 72.0% (T1), 54.5% (T2), 50.6% (T3), and 45.2% (T4). In unadjusted analyses, surgery in T1 disease was associated with higher survival (5-year DSS 93.6% vs. 88.5%), while in advanced disease chemoradiotherapy was associated with the highest DSS (5-year DSS 70.2%), although differences were not statistically significant. No significant differences in DSS were observed across year of diagnosis (2015-2021).
Conclusions:
Survival outcomes for laryngeal cancer remain poor and have shown limited improvement over time. These findings provide important real-world insights into contemporary outcomes and highlight the need for earlier detection, prevention strategies, and prospective collaborative research to improve future outcomes.
