Background: Nasopharyngeal carcinoma in childhood is rare. Radiochemotherapy is considered the standard treatment and yields increased survival and local control rates. In this article, the authors report on the results from the multidisciplinary treatment of pediatric patients who had nasopharyngeal lymphoepithelioma with radiochemotherapy, including high-dose-rate brachytherapy of the primary tumor site.
Methods: Between May 1992 and May 2000, 16 children with nasopharyngeal lymphoepithelioma received neoadjuvant chemotherapy, conventional external beam radiotherapy, high-dose-rate brachytherapy, and adjuvant chemotherapy. Patients ranged in age from 7 years to 18 years, and 9 patients were male. Patient distribution according to clinical disease stage was as follows: Stage III, 1 patient; Stage IVA, 5 patients; Stage IVB, 9 patients; and Stage IVC, 1 patient. Three cycles of neoadjuvant and adjuvant chemotherapy in 3-week intervals were administered with cyclophosphamide, vincristine, doxorubicin, and cisplatin. The median doses of external beam radiotherapy to the primary tumor, positive lymph nodes, and subclinical areas of disease were 55 grays (Gy), 55 Gy, and 45 Gy, respectively. Children received 2 insertions of high-dose-rate brachytherapy at 5 Gy per insertion: These were performed with metallic applicators inserted through the transnasal access under local anesthesia.
Results: The median of follow-up was 54 months. At the time of last follow-up, 13 patients were alive without disease, 2 patients had died of disease, and 1 patient had died of treatment-related cardiac failure. Local control was achieved in 15 of 16 patients. Chemotherapy-related and radiotherapy-related acute toxicity was relevant but tolerable.
Conclusions: In the current study, it was shown that the treatment was effective in the control of both local and distant disease, although there was relevant acute and late toxicity. High-dose-rate brachytherapy was deliverable on an outpatient basis with local anesthesia. Close follow-up of these patients was necessary to evaluate the significance of treatment-related late effects and their impact on quality of life.
(c) 2005 American Cancer Society.