Predictive factors of neck metastases in laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma. Towards an integrated clinico-molecular classification

Our group has 25 years' experience in the use of molecular predictive markers in head and neck cancer, on a large patient population, enrolled from a single institution, with a long follow-up, and, most of all, homogeneous regarding histology (squamous cell carcinoma) and site (larynx). Among the most frequent malignancies in the US, cancers of the larynx and uterine corpus are the only types not showing an increase in 5-year Survival Rates over the last 30 years. As far as concerns laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma, we can identify several potential reasons for this failure, the most relevant probably lies in the neck. For this reason, a key issue in laryngeal oncology is to assess metastatic potential of squamous cell carcinoma at diagnosis. Nevertheless, the combination of clinical and histological parameters is not sufficiently reliable in the prediction of lymph node metastases. Molecular characterization, by the study of molecular predictive factors, is a clinical approach aimed to define homogeneous subgroups for clinical metastatic behaviour. Defining invasiveness by means of studies on selected molecular markers (among which the most reliable is probably Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR)) may be useful in the choice of the most appropriate treatment on both T and on N.