Induction chemotherapy in locally advanced head-and-neck squamous cell carcinoma: Real-world outcome

Introduction: Patients with locally advanced head-and-neck squamous cell carcinoma (LAHNSCC) have a poor prognosis despite multimodality treatment. Aim: This study was done to assess the efficacy and toxicity of induction chemotherapy (IC) in patients with LAHNSCC. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective study of patients with LAHNSCC who were treated with IC from May 2016 to July 2019 from a tertiary care cancer center in India. Results: A total of 26 patients were included in this analysis, with a median follow-up of 9.5 months. The majority of the patients had carcinoma of the oral cavity (96.2%, n = 25) and 1 (3.8%) had oropharyngeal cancer. The most common oral cavity subsites were buccal mucosa (65.4%) and gingivum (11.5%). Fifteen patients received a triplet regimen of IC and 11 patients received a doublet IC regimen. Among patients with an evaluable disease for response assessment (n = 21), complete response, partial response, stable disease, and progressive disease were seen in 9.5%, 66.7%, 19%, and 4.8%, respectively. Among patients with unresectable (Stage IVB) Oral squamous cell cancer (OSCCs), 40% underwent surgery. The median progression-free survival (PFS) was 8 months. Patients who underwent surgery after IC had a better PFS as compared to those who underwent nonoperative local therapy (12 months vs. 8 months). IC-induced Grade 3 or more toxicity occurred in 45% of the patients and mortality occurred in 2 patients (7.7%) due to neutropenic sepsis. Conclusion: IC is feasible in patients with inoperable LAHNSCC. Patients who underwent surgery after IC had a trend towards better PFS as compared to those who underwent nonsurgical local therapy after IC.