Comparison of Treatment Outcomes for T3 Glottic Squamous Cell Carcinoma: A Meta-Analysis

OBJECTIVES This study compared the survival outcomes, local control rate, and laryngeal preservation rate of various treatment strategies in the treatment of T3 squamous cell carcinoma of the glottis using proportional meta-analyses. METHODS Twenty-five retrospective case-series studies were included in these analyses. Treatment strategies were classified as total laryngectomy (TL), open partial laryngectomy (PL), transoral laser microsurgery (TLM), chemo-radiation therapy (CRT), and radiation therapy (RT) alone. RESULTS The overall survival rate and disease-specific survival rate among laryngeal preservation treatments did not differ from the overall survival rate of TL. However, the local control rate was lower with RT than TL and PL, and laryngeal preservation rates of TLM and CRT were higher than RT alone. CONCLUSION Consideration of preservation of laryngeal function is necessary when treating T3 glottic squamous cell carcinoma. PL, TLM, and, CRT are considered more appropriate initial laryngeal preservation strategies if available.