Efficacy and safety of chemoradiotherapy when performed by head and neck surgeon

Concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) has been recognized as a standard treatment for the local advanced SCCHN. We perform 40-50 CCRT annually during operations on more than 230 patients in our division. CCRT with high-dose single-agent cisplatin is now the standard of care for nonsurgical treatment for local advanced SCCHN. We use a similar method for eligible cases. All patients were able to receive the full dose of radiotherapy (70 Gy) and completed at least two courses chemotherapy. We were able to perform this regimen with sufficient supportive care. This regimen is feasible for the treatment of Japanese patients with SCCHN, and does not require the modification of the treatment plan to account for racial differences. The introduction of this regimen is expected in the future in many other institutions in Japan. The new CCRT menu has been made by prospective clinical studies and requires a multicenter study. It is necessary to give an opinion from a surgical viewpoint with respect to the structure of the protocol and such matters to clinical oncologists who are expert in protocol formation. Head and neck surgeons constitute the treatment team for patients with head and neck cancer and should control the treatment plan.