Radiation therapy in inverted papillomas of the nasal cavity and paranasal sinuses

PURPOSE: Between December 1969 and September 1989, a total of 10 patients with advanced and/or recurrent inverted or cylindrical cell papillomas were treated with irradiation at the University of Florida in Gainesville. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Nine of 10 patients had 1 or more recurrences before they received radiation therapy. Three patients were treated with irradiation alone, and 7 patients received surgery and irradiation (preoperatively in 1 patient and postoperatively in 6 patients). Eight patients had inverted papillomas (3 with concomitant squamous cell carcinoma), and 2 patients had cylindrical cell papillomas. Results: Local recurrence developed in 4 patients at 1.5, 6.5, 12, and 13 years after treatment. No evidence of recurrence was observed in 6 patients at 7, 8.5, 8.5, 9, 9, and 20.5 years after treatment. Four patients died of intercurrent disease. No patient developed a malignant transformation. Significant complications of treatment included, in 1 patient, an area of bone exposure in the orbit that necessitated debridement. CONCLUSION: Surgery is the primary treatment of this entity. Radiation therapy should be considered in patients with incompletely resectable lesions, multiply recurrent tumors, and tumors associated with malignancy.