Elective neck dissection versus observation in patients with head and neck cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma

The survival benefit of elective neck dissection (END) for patients with cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC) of the head and neck has never been reported. A retrospective study at MD Anderson Cancer Center (Houston, TX) incuded 1111 HNcSCC patients who had undergone primary surgery with no evidence of nodal disease. Among these patients 173 had END, while 938 were observed. The five-year overall survival rate was 52% in the END group and 63% in the observation group (p=0.003). The five year disease-free survival rate was 73% in the END group and 75% in the observation group (p=0.429). A multivariate regression model showed that performance of END was not associated with improved survival.