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The role of brachytherapy in the treatment of squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck

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European Archives of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Brachytherapy is a form of intensive local irradiation, allowing effective protection of surrounding structures with preservation of organ function and results in a favorable therapeutic ratio. It can be used alone, adjuvantly after surgery, and as a local boost in combination with external-beam radiation therapy. This paper is a literature review on the role of brachytherapy in the management of head and neck cancers with a special emphasis on papers published in the last 5 years. Technical details, effectiveness and potential toxicities of brachytherapy when used in different combinations with other therapeutic modalities and tumor sites are presented. Brachytherapy is an attractive treatment option in the management of primary malignancies and recurrent tumors in previously irradiated areas of the head and neck. It is effective and safe, and results in good functional and oncological outcomes.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Poznań University of Medical Sciences, Poznan, Poland

    Małgorzata Wierzbicka & Anna Bartochowska

  2. Department of Radiation Oncology, Division of Interventional Radiation Oncology, University Hospital Erlangen, Erlangen, Germany

    Vratislav Strnad

  3. Department of Radiation Oncology, Institute of Oncology, Ljubljana, Slovenia

    Primož Strojan

  4. Department of Radiation Oncology, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA

    William M. Mendenhall

  5. Department of Radiation Oncology, Beth Israel Medical Center and St. Luke’s–Roosevelt Hospitals, New York, NY, USA

    Louis B. Harrison

  6. University of Udine School of Medicine, Piazzale S. Maria della Misericordia, I-33100, Udine, Italy

    Alessandra Rinaldo & Alfio Ferlito

  7. Department of Radiation Oncology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India

    Puja Sahai

  8. Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Philipp University, Marburg, Germany

    Susanne Wiegand

Authors
  1. Małgorzata Wierzbicka
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  2. Anna Bartochowska
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  3. Vratislav Strnad
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  4. Primož Strojan
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  5. William M. Mendenhall
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  6. Louis B. Harrison
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  7. Alessandra Rinaldo
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  8. Puja Sahai
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  9. Susanne Wiegand
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  10. Alfio Ferlito
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Alfio Ferlito.

Additional information

This paper was written by members and invitees of the International Head and Neck Scientific Group (http://www.IHNSG.com).

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Wierzbicka, M., Bartochowska, A., Strnad, V. et al. The role of brachytherapy in the treatment of squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck. Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol 273, 269–276 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00405-014-3332-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00405-014-3332-8

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