Results of the JRS-I LRA0401 and LRB0402 Japan Rhabdomyosarcoma Study Group trials for low-risk embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma.

Background: Failure-free survival (FFS) rates of low-risk patients with rhabdomyosarcoma improved in Intergroup Rhabdomyosarcoma Study IV after the escalation of cyclophosphamide total dose to 26.4 g/m. However, this dose may increase the risk of adverse events, including infertility, in some patients.

A Case of Huge Cutaneous Verrucous Carcinoma of the Neck.

Verrucous carcinoma (VC) is a rare subtype of squamous cell carcinoma. VC commonly occurs in the mucosa, but rarely occurs in the skin. The treatment for VC is surgical removal of the tumor.

Indications for and extent of elective neck dissection for lymph node metastasis from external auditory canal carcinoma.

Objectives: We aim to clarify the frequency of lymph node metastasis of external auditory canal (EAC) carcinoma, including susceptible locations, adequate extent of elective neck dissection, and the relationship between the tumor infiltration site and lymph node metastasis.

Patients And Methods: From 2003 to 2018, 63 patients with EAC carcinoma at Tokyo Medical and Dental University Hospital were enrolled in this study. The T and N stages, locations of clinically positive lymph nodes, prognoses, and anatomic site of tumor infiltration were analyzed after treatment.

Endoscopy-Aided Combined Intraoral and Cervical Approach for a Huge Parapharyngeal Benign Tumor.

We introduce here our surgical approach for the removal of a huge parapharyngeal tumor in 3 cases. Surgery was done under general anesthesia using transnasal intubation. Transoral manipulation was performed first.

Otitis Media With Effusion Caused by a Parapharyngeal Tumor Showing Normal Nasopharyngeal Findings.

The objective of this study is to evaluate otitis media with effusion (OME) among patients with parapharyngeal tumor. We have experienced 82 parapharyngeal tumor cases and encountered 14 patients complaining of hearing loss due to OME as the initial symptom. These patients showed normal nasopharyngeal findings and the presence of tumor had been detected long time after the beginning of their hearing symptoms (4 months to 13 years: median 2.

Improving the Quality of Life of Patients With Severe Dysphagia by Surgically Closing the Larynx.

Objectives:: The aim of this study was to elucidate the utility of the Kano method with surgical closure of the larynx by cricoid cartilage removal in improving quality of life in patients with severe dysphagia and their caregivers.

Methods:: Nine patients with severe dysphagia who underwent the Kano method were evaluated for oral intake and activities of daily living using the functional oral intake scale and the Barthel index, respectively, as indices of quality of life. Additionally, nutritional status, inflammation, and postoperative complications were assessed.

Maxillary Swing Approach for Removal of Palatal Carcinoma: A Modified Procedure.

Introduction: We report a modification of the maxillary swing approach to remove a palatal tumor while preserving the anterior alveolar area.

Methods: Case report using clinical records.

Results: The patient was a 54-year-old male.

An Unusual Invasive Ectopic Thymoma in the Thyroid and Anterior Mediastinum.

An 81-year-old woman with a 2-year history of dysphagia detected a cervical mass. Computed tomography showed a thyroid tumor extending through the superior and anterior mediastinum. Analysis of an incisional biopsy specimen revealed a thymoma.

A new method for selecting auricle positions in skull base reconstruction for temporal bone cancer.

Objective: In advanced temporal bone carcinoma cases, we attempted to preserve as much of the auricle as possible from a cosmetic and functional perspective. Difficulties are associated with selecting an adequate position for reconstructed auricles intraoperatively. We improved the surgical procedure to achieve a good postoperative auricle position.

Right dominance in the incidence of external auditory canal squamous cell carcinoma in the Japanese population: Does handedness affect carcinogenesis?

Objectives/hypothesis: To investigate the relationship between handedness and the incidence of squamous cell carcinoma in the external auditory canal (EACSCC).

Materials And Methods: Sixty-eight cases of EACSCC were enrolled in this study, and their affected side was checked. Handedness and ear-picking habits were also investigated in 34 EACSCC cases.

Patterns of stress coping and depression among patients with head and neck cancer: A Japanese cross-sectional study.

Objective: Patients with head and neck cancer (HNC) experience many stressful problems with breathing, eating, swallowing, and/or speaking. The aim of this study was to (a) identify the clusters of HNC patients based on their stress coping strategies and (b) evaluate the differences in clinical data and depression among the identified HNC patients' coping clusters.

Methods: We conducted a single-center, cross-sectional study with self-completed questionnaires for patients with HNC between April and August 2013.

Japanese Clinical Practice Guideline for Head and Neck Cancer.

Objective: The first revision of "Japanese Clinical Practice Guideline for Head and Neck Cancer" was made in 2013 by the clinical practice guideline committee of Japan Society for Head and Neck Cancer, in response to the revision of the TNM classification.

Methods: 34 CQs (Clinical Questions) were newly adopted to describe the diagnosis and treatment methods currently considered most appropriate, and offered recommendation grade made by the consensus of the committee. A comprehensive literature search was performed for studies published between 2001 and 2012 using PubMed.

Indication for and Limitation of the Facial Dismasking Flap Approach for Skull Base Surgery to Achieve the Best Esthetical and Functional Results.

Background: The facial dismasking flap (FDF) approach to operations on the deep skull base region consists of a coronal incision and a circumpalpebral incision. This approach provides a wide surgical field for extirpation of deep extended craniofacial tumors without leaving any undesirable scars on the face. Therefore, the FDF approach can provide satisfactory esthetical and functional results.

Feasibility and Advantage of a Muscle-Sparing Laterally Based Pericranial Flap.

Background: For a safe and reliable middle skull base reconstruction, the temporalis muscle flaps or pericranial-temporalis muscle flaps have usually been used as the first-choice in clinical practice. But these flaps have an inevitable disadvantage, namely, temporal hollowing. To address this problem, in this study, the authors describe the feasibility and advantages of using a muscle-sparing laterally based pericranial flap.

[Combined Anterior Craniofacial Resection for Locally Advanced Ethmoid Carcinomas].

Objective: Carcinoma of the ethmoid sinus is very rare, and treatment for locally advanced tumors remains as a formidable challenge to the clinician. We reviewed cases of ethmoid carcinoma in which anterior craniofacial resection had been undertaken and evaluated the safety and validity of the operative methods.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 13 patients with ethmoid carcinoma who underwent combined anterior craniofacial resection.

Risk factors for cervical lymph node metastasis in superficial head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

Introduction: The necessity of transoral surgery for head and neck carcinoma is increasing, but its indications for the treatment of superficial head and neck carcinomas have not yet been established. This study was intended to help establish the standard indications for transoral surgery and additional therapy in patients with superficial head and neck carcinoma.

Methods: Sixty-two patients with 83 superficial head and neck carcinoma underwent transoral tumor resection at the Cancer Institute Hospital between June 2006 and September 2011.

Persistence of psychological distress and correlated factors among patients with head and neck cancer.

Objective: Many patients with head and neck cancer (HNC) suffer from psychological distress associated with dysfunction and/or disfigurement. Our aim was to evaluate the ratio of patients with persistence of psychological distress during hospitalization and identify the predictors of persistence or change in psychological distress among HNC patients.

Method: We conducted a single-center longitudinal study with self-completed questionnaires.

Use of Intraoperative Fluorescent Indocyanine Green Angiography for Real-Time Vascular Evaluation of Pericranial Flaps.

Background: Pericranial flaps (PCFs) have been widely used for skull base reconstruction. The key to successful skull base reconstruction using PCF depends on flap vascularity, but there have been no reports describing the real-time vascularity of PCF. In this study, we performed intraoperative fluorescent indocyanine green angiography to evaluate the real-time vascularity and viability of PCF and to estimate the reliability of this flap.

Extended orbital exenteration for sinonasal malignancy with orbital apex extension: surgical technique and clinical analysis.

Object: The majority of sinonasal malignancies present with advanced disease, and cure rates are generally poor. Surgical extirpation remains the mainstay of treatment. In cases of sinonasal malignancy with orbital apex extension, gross-total tumor resection requires orbital exenteration and bony skull base resection around the orbital apex to provide sufficient margins.

[What is the role of otolaryngologists in deglutition practice?--A survey for medical practitioners in different fields].

The advent of a super aging society is causing a rapid increase in the number of patients with dysphagia, and, in response, the use of percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) has become markedly widespread over the past decade. As the result of its rapid spread, PEG is controversial both ethically and economically, and, in the revision of medical treatment fees for 2014, the preoperative deglutition usability test of all cases is fixed for the full amount request requirements of gastrostomy. Thus, the demands on dysphagia practice are rising.

Reliability and validity of the Head and Neck Cancer Inventory (HNCI) in Japanese patients.

Objective: This project evaluated the psychometric properties of a translated version of the Head and Neck Cancer Inventory (HNCI) for use with Japanese patients. The HNCI is a measure for assessing the quality of life (QoL) of head and neck cancer patients and survivors. The present study was aimed at investigating the reliability and validity of this translated instrument.

Clinical characteristics of Japanese oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma positive for human papillomavirus infection.

Conclusion: Human papillomavirus (HPV)-related oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) is considered to be a distinct entity in Japan. The combination of both HPV-DNA sequencing analysis and immunohistochemistry (IHC) for p16(INK4A) is useful to discriminate the OPSCC patients with a better prognosis from other cases, especially in the advanced stage. Surgical treatment is recommended for HPV-negative advanced cancer.

Synovial sarcoma of the temporomandibular joint and infratemporal fossa.

Objective: Synovial sarcoma in the head and neck region is rare, and is difficult to resect with adequate safety margins because of its anatomical complexity. We herein report our experiences with synovial sarcoma in this region, and review the literature regarding the management of such cases.

Method: We retrospectively examined four cases of synovial sarcoma arising from the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) area and infratemporal fossa.

Diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance neurography for parapharyngeal schwannomas: preoperative determination of the originating nerves.

Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the feasibility of diffusion-weighted (DW) magnetic resonance neurography (MRN) for determining the originating nerve of parapharyngeal schwannomas preoperatively.

Methods: Six patients who underwent DW-MRN preoperatively for a parapharyngeal schwannoma were studied. Prediction of the originating nerve was performed.