Epidermoid carcinoma of the palate

A retrospective review of a consecutive series of 293 patients with epidermoid carcinoma of the hard and soft palate is presented. A majority of the patients had primary tumors larger than 2 cm at the time of initial diagnosis. Surgery was the initial treatment employed in most patients. The stage of disease at the time of initial treatment had a distinct influence on prognosis: the 5 year survival rates were 70 percent for stage I, 45 percent for stage II, 32 percent for stage III, and 6 percent for stage IV lesions. A significant number of patients developed a second primary lesion, and the cure rate for those patients decreased to 28 percent. Although surgery and radiotherapy are perhaps equally effective in the control of early-staged disease, it appears that a combination of surgery and postoperative radiotherapy for advanced disease is preferred.