Survival outcomes in patients with parotid gland carcinoma treated with postoperative therapies using risk stratification.

Abstract

To evaluate the role of postoperative treatment in parotid gland carcinoma (PGC) based on risk stratification. A total of 301 PGC patients were retrospectively analyzed using risk stratification. The Kaplan-Meier method and Cox analysis were performed to conduct survival analysis. In the high-risk group, those treated with postoperative radiotherapy (RT) had a better 5-year disease-free survival (DFS) than those treated with surgery alone. In the low-risk group, both surgery + RT and surgery +  chemotherapy (CT) significantly improved DFS when compared with surgery alone. Cox analysis showed that patients who underwent surgery + RT or surgery + CT had a lower risk of disease progression than those who underwent surgery alone in the low-risk group. In the high-risk group, patients who underwent surgery + RT had a lower risk of disease progression. Postoperative RT showed considerable benefit in improving disease control in patients with PGC, even in those without high-risk factors.