Virtual surgical planning in soft tissue reconstruction for oral cancer

Introduction. Reconstruction of soft tissue defects after radical surgeries in cancer patients is important for early surgical rehabilitation and improving quality of life. Our study presents technologies for virtual surgical planning (VSP) of soft tissue defect reconstruction in patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity.Case presentation. We described VSP in a report of a 54-year-old patient with locally advanced buccal mucosa cancer after extensive radical resection and reported the results. VSP was used to construct a 3D model from CT images, which was used to accurately assess the margin of radical surgical resection, as well as to develop individually based reconstruction of soft tissue defects. Next, we reported a series of cases of patients with oral cancer of various locations, who, after radical surgery, underwent reconstruction with using of VSP (n=7) or conventional reconstruction (n=10). A comparative analysis of intra and postoperative results was carried out.Results. In a patient with locally advanced left buccal mucosa cancer, reconstruction of the postoperative defect was successful without local complications after reconstruction. Good functional and aesthetic results were obtained. The patient was observed for 2 years without signs of disease. A comparative assessment of the results of the main and control groups showed that patients in the VSP group had a shorter operation time and postoperative hospital stay, as well as fewer and milder postoperative local complications in comparison with the control group.Conclusion. Our results showed the effectiveness of using 3D technology in reconstructive surgery of soft tissue defects after radical surgery for oral SCC. This technology has significantly reduced operative time, hospital stay, and improved flap utilization. This method has great potential for wider application and provides greater benefits with further improvement of technology.