Elective neck dissection vs observation in transorally treated early head and neck carcinomas with cN0 neck.

Conclusion: This study showed that elective neck dissection (ND) resulted in reduced regional recurrences in a selected group of surgically treated patients with pT1-2 carcinomas but did not show any benefit for disease-specific survival (DSS). Furthermore, the importance of pN classification was also verified for this patient group.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine whether the use of elective ND in patients with early head and neck carcinomas and cN0 neck that have undergone a transoral removal of the primary tumor can reduce the incidence of regional recurrence and improve survival.