Patients with cancer in the oropharynx - middle part of the throat that includes the tongue base, tonsils, soft palate and pharynx - who underwent TransOral Robotic Surgery (TORS) as the first line of treatment experienced an average three-year survival from time of diagnosis, researchers said.
The study, at Henry Ford Hospital in the US, found that the incisionless robotic surgery, done alone or in conjunction with chemotherapy or radiation, may offer oropharyngeal patients good outcomes.
"For non-surgical patients, several studies have shown that p16 positive throat cancers, or HPV- related throat cancers, have better survival and less recurrence than p16 negative throat cancers," said lead author Tamer Ghanem, from the Henry Ford Hospital.
"Within our study, patients treated with robotic surgery had excellent results and survival, irrespective of their p16 status," he added.
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TORS offers patients an option to remove certain head and neck cancer tumours without visible scarring, while preserving speech and the ability to eat.
Unlike traditional surgical approaches to head and neck cancer which require a large incision and long recovery, TORS patients are able to return to their normal lives only a few days after surgery without significant pain and disfigurement.
For the study, researchers wanted to take a closer look at the effectiveness of TORS for oropharyngeal cancer patients. They reviewed overall three-year survival, cancer control and metastasis, as well as the effect of p16 status on these variables.
The study included 53 oropharyngeal cancer patients who had TORS. Thirty-seven per cent underwent TORS alone, while more than 11 per cent had TORS with radiation therapy, and more than half received chemotherapy and radiation therapy.
The study showed patients with a p16 negative marker had high survival (100 per cent) and low cancer recurrence when TORS was the first line of treatment, as well as when TORS was followed by chemotherapy or radiation therapy.
The majority of patients (63 per cent) were able to receive a lower dose of radiation after TORS, which reduces the risk of radiation side effects.