Pediatric Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma: Patient Demographics, Treatment Trends, and Outcomes

Abstract Objectives To examine patient demographics, temporal and treatment trends, and survival outcomes of pediatric non-nasopharyngeal head and neck squamous cell carcinomas using the National Cancer Database. Methods The National Cancer Database was queried for pediatric patients (age 0–19 years) diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (including oral cavity, oropharynx, nasal cavity, larynx, hypopharynx, and salivary glands) from 2004 to 2013. Results Of 159 patients identified, the majority had oral cavity SCC (55%). There was no discernable change in incidence trends over the study period with the number of cases per year ranging from 10 to 20 (R2 = 0.174). The predominant treatment regimen for the nasal cavity was trimodality (surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy) treatment (29%), chemotherapy and radiation for the oropharynx (40%), and surgery alone for salivary gland (47%), oral cavity (44%), and larynx (22%). The 5-year overall survival for the entire cohort was 74% and by subsite: oral cavity (66%), oropharynx (68%), nasal cavity (75%), and larynx (95%). Laryngeal disease had statistically significant longer survival when compared to oral cavity (p = .031) or oropharynx (p = .029). Conclusion Although pediatric non-nasopharyngeal head and neck squamous cell carcinomas are rare, practitioners should be aware of this entity and consider it in the differential diagnosis of pediatric malignancies.