Organ preservation following radiation therapy and concurrent intra‐arterial low dose cisplatin infusion for advanced T2 and T3 laryngeal cancer: Long‐term clinical results from a pilot study

Background: This pilot study evaluated the long-term outcomes of patients with advanced T2 or T3 squamous cell carcinoma of the larynx (SCC-L) who were treated with selective intra-arterial cisplatin and concomitant radiotherapy (RADPLAT). Methods: We retrospectively investigated the data of 49 patients with advanced T2 or T3 SCC-L who received a RADPLAT regimen with low-dose cisplatin. Results: The 5-year locoregional control, disease-specific survival, and overall survival rates were 83.3%, 88.1%, and 82.6%, respectively, while the 5-year freedom from laryngectomy, laryngectomy-free survival, and laryngo-esophageal dysfunction-free survival rates were 89.6%, 79.4%, and 77.1%, respectively. The incidences of grade 3-4 hematologic and nonhematologic toxicities were 18% and 6%, respectively. Although two patients (4%) developed late toxicities within 5 years following RADPLAT, no other events were noted beyond 5 years. Conclusion: This pilot study demonstrated that RADPLAT is feasible and safe and yielded favorable survival outcomes and functional laryngeal preservation in patients with advanced T2 or T3 SCC-L. Level of evidence: 3.