Cerebral infarction after intraarterial and intravenous chemoradiotherapy for head and neck cancer: A retrospective analysis using a Japanese inpatient database.

BACKGROUND The occurrence of cerebral infarction after intraarterial chemoradiotherapy (CRT) remains uncertain. METHODS We conducted a retrospective cohort study using the Diagnosis Procedure Combination (DPC) database from 2010 to 2013. We performed a 1:4 propensity score-matched analysis between patients undergoing intraarterial or intravenous CRT, and determined the association between cerebral infarction and intraarterial CRT. RESULTS Among patients with head and neck cancer receiving platinum-based chemotherapy and concurrent radiotherapy, we identified 776 patients with intraarterial CRT and 7157 with intravenous CRT. The occurrence of cerebral infarction was significantly higher in the intraarterial CRT group than in the intravenous CRT group: 1.4% (11 of 775) versus 0.4% (12 of 3100; p = .002). There was no significant difference in mucosal toxicity or febrile neutropenia. CONCLUSION About 10% of patients received intraarterial CRT. Intraarterial CRT was associated with a higher incidence of cerebral infarction than was intravenous CRT. This result is useful when considering the procedure-related risks and the potential benefits of intraarterial CRT. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck 38: 1354-1358, 2016.