Effect of liver disease on post-therapeutic complications of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. A prospective study of 94 patients.

The principal risk factors for the development of Head &Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma (HNSCC) are chronic alcohol and/or tobacco consumption. The evaluation of patient comorbidities is critical in the assessment of contraindications to usual treatment modalities, particularly for surgery. Most chronic liver diseases are usually asymptomatic until cirrhosis occurs with clinical decompensation. In this series, hepatic elastometry was higher in patients who had post therapeutic complications versus patients who had no complications. A routine non invasive and relatively cost-effective evaluation of liver function for patients suffering from HNSCC could be proposed during the initial staging of cancer.