Chest computerized tomography scanning in patients presenting with head and neck cancer

Between 1 to 16% of patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) have synchronous tumours; the majority (> 50%) occurring within the lung. Previous studies have relied upon endoscopy and chest radiographs. The aim of this study was to determine the incidence of synchronous intrapulmonary tumours in this group of patients using computerized tomography (CT) scanning. Over 36 months, 111 consecutive patients were assessed at presentation by contrast enhanced CT scanning from the skull base to the diaphragm. Chest scans showed intrapulmonary lesions in 17 patients and 10 have, with time, been confirmed as neoplastic. These allowed treatment of three primary bronchial carcinomas following radical treatment of the index tumour and cancellation of radical treatment in five patients with metastases. Two patients with possible metastases at presentation underwent radical treatment to the index tumour with subsequent follow-up confirming metastatic chest disease. All 10 patients eventually died of either locoregional or metastatic disease. This is one of the first prospective reports of chest scanning in patients with head and neck cancer. An additional chest scan in this group, many of whom undergo a staging scan of the neck, requires an extra 10 min with no further contrast and in this study yielded a synchronous tumour rate of 9%.