De-escalation of post-treatment surveillance in oropharyngeal cancer.

Background The majority of new oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) cases are associated with human papillomavirus and favorable prognosis. Post-treatment follow-up should be targeted to patients at greatest risk for disease recurrence. Methods To assess the benefits of routine clinical surveillance in OPSCC, we reviewed all follow-up visits conducted in 2014 at Helsinki University Hospital Department of Otorhinolaryngology. Results Of 366 visits, 26 (7%) were from patients presenting with a new symptom, and disease recurrence was detected in four. The presence of a new symptom was significantly associated with disease recurrence (P < 0.001). Of 366 visits, 340 (93%) were from patients presenting without new symptoms, and not a single recurrence was found during these visits. Conclusions Based on our findings, and previous studies assessing the prognosis and pattern of recurrent OPSCC, we concluded that the number of routine post-treatment visits can be reduced. Follow-up should rather focus on symptom-directed examinations.