Osteoradionecrosis in patients with salivary gland malignancies

Salivary gland malignancies (SGM) are relatively rare but are rising in incidence [1]. SGM account for 3–5% of all head and neck cancers and can occur in major glands (parotid, submandibular, and sublingual) or minor glands within the mucosal lining of the oral cavity, oropharynx, and nasal cavity. The most common histological subtypes of SGM are adenoid cystic carcinoma, mucoepidermoid carcinoma, and acinic cell carcinoma [2]. Radiation therapy has been shown to be effective at increasing the survival of high-risk patients who have close or positive margins, lymph node metastasis, locally advanced disease, bone or nerve involvement, and/or recurrent disease [3], and therefore it is delivered in nearly 40% of SGM patients treated at our institution in the last decade.

Source: Oral Oncology - March 30, 2016 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: J. Rhet Tucker, Li Xu, Erich M. Sturgis, Abdallah S.R. Mohamed, Theresa M. Hofstede, Mark S. Chambers, Stephen Y. Lai, Clifton David Fuller, Beth Beadle, G. Brandon Gunn, Katherine A. Hutcheson Source Type: research