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An analysis of 37 patients with laryngeal carcinoma (T2 or greater) treated with radical radiotherapy, with surgery reserved for failure, was performed to determine if tumor volume, alone or in association with other prognostic factors, accurately predicted the probability of local control. Patient records were reviewed retrospectively and the following data extracted: age, sex, laryngeal region and number of sites involved by tumor, T and N categories, and success or failure of radiotherapy. Tumor volume for each patient was calculated from pretreatment computed tomograms by summing the products of the cross-sectional tumor area on each CT cut and the interval in millimeters between sequential CT cuts. The mean tumor volume for patients failing radiotherapy was 21.8 cm3, and the mean volume for patients primarily controlled by radiotherapy was 8.86 cm3. Tumor volume significantly predicted disease-free interval (p = .045) and outcome with radiotherapy (p = .02). The study suggests that tumor volume is a significant factor in determining the outcome of primary radiotherapy in advanced laryngeal carcinoma.

Over 300 instances of the association of laryngocele with laryngeal carcinoma have been reported in Europe, but only seven in North America. In the present study, 353 serially sectioned total laryngectomy specimens were examined and the saccule measured with a steel ruler. Saccules extending superior or posterior to the thyroid cartilage were considered as large. Larynges were classified as “cancer” or “normal,” the latter being uninvaded organs from patients with adjacent disease. Among the 242 cancer larynges, there were 43 specimens where the saccule exceeded thyroid cartilage dimensions, a laryngocele rate of 17.8%. Mean saccule height was significantly greater in cancer than in normal specimens in coronal sections (P=0.04), and mean saccule length was significantly greater in cancer than in normal specimens in horizontal sections (P=0.001). The incidence of large saccules showed a difference between cancer and normal larynges which was highly significant (P=0.0002).

The authors formed a Mouth Clinic at Sunnybrook Hospital in 1973 since when there have been 3025 patient visits. Those patients with chronic ulceration present a challenge, the diagnosis sometimes being difficult and therapy not rapidly effective. The differential diagnosis includes lichen planus, pemphigus vulgaris, benign mucous membrane pemphigoid, discoid lupus erythematosus, erythema multiforme, aphthous ulcers, Behcets disease, periadenitis mucosa necrotica recurrens, specific infections and iatrogenic causes. It is possible to reach a definite diagnosis in virtually every case by means of a good history and careful clinical examination supplemented by biopsies and in some cases direct and indirect immunofluorescent studies. Treatment emphasizes scrupulous attention to oral hygiene with baking soda mouthwashes and careful teeth cleaning to minimize the accumulation of dental plaque. Specific therapy includes topical steroids in lichen planus, intra muscular gold in benign mucous membrane pemphigoid, a previously unreported treatment which considerably improved seven out of ten patients, and tetracycline mouthwashes in aphthous ulcers.