Impact of demographics, tumor characteristics, and treatment factors on swallowing after (chemo)radiotherapy for head and neck cancer.

Background: This prospective study evaluated the impact of patient demographics, tumor characteristics, and radiotherapy treatment on swallowing before and after radiotherapy or chemoradiotherapy.
Methods: Eighty-one patients with head and neck cancer were examined using videofluoroscopy swallowing studies (VFSS) before treatment and again at 3 and 6 months after treatment.
Results: Swallowing was best at baseline, significantly worse 3 months posttreatment, and improved by 6 months posttreatment. Worse swallowing was associated with: living in rural areas; ex-heavy alcohol consumption; hypopharyngeal tumor site; large (particularly T4) tumors; nonconformal radiotherapy; bilateral radiation to the pharynx; and longer radiotherapy fields. Through the use of multiple regression analysis, previous swallowing was determined to be the most common predictor of swallowing outcomes, followed by T classification, alcohol history, and radiotherapy technique.
Conclusions: The pretreatment and treatment factors that influenced swallowing in this cohort should be considered when planning treatment, in discussing potential side effects with patients, and when developing and testing future treatment techniques.