Introduction
Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) represent 90% of head and neck cancers
(HNC), which is the fifth most common cancer worldwide. Oral and
oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OOSCC) accounts for respectively
30% and 20% of HNC(1).
Histological prognostic factors are widely acknowledged currently and
constitute an integral part of the therapeutic strategy. However, they
are only obtainable after pathological examination of the entire
resected specimen. Indeed, small sizes of preoperative biopsy samples
may not allow assessment of the tumor differentiation degree, and may
not accurately represent the nature of the entire tumor(2). It is
therefore not currently possible to determine histological prognostic
factors preoperatively nor for patients who do not benefit from a
surgical treatment.
CT texture analysis (CT-TA) has been reported to be a useful tool for
preoperatively assessing survival in various types of cancers, such as
oesophageal, colorectal, non-small cell lung cancers, hepatocellular
carcinoma, metastatic melanoma and also to predict treatment
response(3,4). CT-TA can indeed overcome the drawbacks related to visual
analysis of tumor heterogeneity and quantify the heterogeneity
reflecting spatial differences in tumor perfusion and proliferation(5).
In locally advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC), a
recent study has reported the potential prognostic value of tumor
texture features on overall survival(6).
The purpose of this retrospective study was to determine if
contrast-enhanced CT- based texture analysis could constitute a new
biomarker of overall survival (OS) and event-free survival (EFS) in
patients suffering from OOSCC treated by surgical resection