Salvage surgery for recurrent or residual hypopharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma: A systematic review.

Background: This systematic review aggregates the data of studies that include site‐specific analyses of patients undergoing salvage surgery for residual or recurrent hypopharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma. Methods: The primary outcomes are disease‐free, disease‐specific, and overall survival (DFS, DSS, and OS, respectively). Secondary outcomes include complications and postoperative feeding requirements. Results: Fifteen studies met the inclusion criteria with a total of 442 patients. Two‐year DFS is reported from 30.0 to 50.0% and 5‐year DFS ranges from 15.0 to 57.1%. Five‐year DSS ranges from 28.0 to 57.1%. Two‐year OS ranges from 38.8 to 52.0% and 5‐year OS ranges from 15.5 to 57.1%. Complications include pharyngocutaneous fistula (0.0–71.4%), carotid artery rupture (2.9–13.3%), and stomal stenosis (4.2–20.0%). Complete oral feeding achieved following surgery ranges from 61.9 to 100.0%, while complete gastrostomy tube dependence ranges from 0.0 to 28.6%. Conclusions: Salvage surgery for residual or recurrent hypopharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma has a relatively high complication rate and should be offered to patients with the understanding of a guarded prognosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]