Outcome after partial frontolateral laryngectomy

The purpose of this study was to determine the recurrence rate and the long-term survival of patients treated with frontolateral laryngectomy for early glottic cancer. The study is a retrospective analysis of a cohort of patients who underwent frontolateral laryngectomy from 1995 to 2002 with a median follow-up of 48 months. This was a consecutive series of 30 patients with T1bN0 and T2N0 vocal fold carcinoma. Previously treated patients were excluded. Surgical treatment consisted of frontolateral partial vertical laryngectomy and reconstruction with bipedicle sternohyoid muscle flap. Twenty-five patients have been alive with no evidence of the disease. The median follow-up was 48 months (range, 6-85 months). Five patients experienced local recurrence. One of them underwent salvage partial hemilaryngectomy, and 4 underwent wide-field total laryngectomy with adjuvant postoperative radiation therapy. Four of five patients with retreatment were ultimately salvaged, with a median follow-up of 30 months. We had one death caused by the disease. Frontolateral laryngectomy is an efficient treatment for selected cases of early glottic carcinoma.