[Evaluation of pharyngeal and laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma after neoadjuvant immunochemotherapy by narrow band imaging].

Abstract

Objective: To investigate the changes in the narrow band imaging (NBI) phenotypes of oropharyngeal, hypopharyngeal, and laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma after neoadjuvant immunochemotherapy, and to explore the clinical value of NBI endoscopy in re-evaluation and follow-up of pharyngeal and laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma after neoadjuvant immunochemotherapy. Methods: Twenty-nine patients diagnosed with locally advanced pharyngeal or laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma in the First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University from November 2021 to January 2024 and receiving 2 cycles of neoadjuvant immunochemotherapy were selected, including 26 males and 3 females, aged 43-80 years. Regular NBI and white light (WL) endoscopy examinations, as well as imaging examinations such as CT scans, were performed. After the neoadjuvant immunochemotherapy, 36 specimens from suspected lesions of the pharynx or the larynx were obtained through surgical resection. The NBI findings of the pharyngeal or laryngeal lesions and their relationships with corresponding pathological and imaging results were analyzed with kappa test, Pearson correlation analysis, McNemar test, and Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test. Results: After neoadjuvant immunochemotherapy, primary lesions showed pathological complete response (pCR) in 9 cases, partial response (PR) in 19 cases, and progressive disease (PD) in one case. The NBI phenotypes of pharyngeal and laryngeal malignant tumors after treatment showed high consistency (kappa=0.818, P<0.01) and significant correlations (r=0.852, P<0.01) with their pathological results. WL endoscopic examinations showed inconsistency (kappa=0.239, P=0.12) with their pathological results. NBI endoscopy was more effective in identifying benign lesions after treatment than WL endoscopy (P=0.031). In cases of both PR and pCR of the primary lesion, there were significant differences in NBI phenotypes before and after neoadjuvant immunochemotherapy (all P<0.05), with phenotypes transitioning to lower malignancy and benign lesions, respectively. Among 19 cases with PR, 16 showed concentric/eccentric regression, and 3 showed multipoint focal regression. NBI endoscopy was more accurate in diagnosing benign or malignant lesions, pCR or PR after treatment compared to CT (all P<0.05). Conclusions: The present NBI microvascular classification of the pharyngeal and laryngeal lesions is still applicable for the diagnosis and evaluation in pharyngeal and laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma after neoadjuvant immunochemotherapy. The changes in NBI phenotypes and ranges can indicate tumor regression, progression, and recurrence. NBI is more accurate in diagnosing pharyngeal and laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma after neoadjuvant immunochemotherapy compared to WL endoscopy and imaging examinations such as CT.