Craniofacial resection and its role in the management of sinonasal malignancies

Impact of Dural Resection on Sinonasal Malignancies with Skull Base Encroachment or Erosion

Objectives  (1) To determine the occult rate of dural invasion in patients with tumors extending to and/or eroding the bony anterior skull base but without evidence of dural invasion on preoperative imaging. (2) To determine the impact of dural resection and of skull base erosion on survival outcomes in this group of patients (without evidence of dural invasion upon preoperative imaging). Study Design  Retrospective study. Setting  Tertiary care academic center. Participants  Patients with sinonasal malignancies with anterior skull base encroachment/erosion without dural invasion on preoperative imaging treated surgically. Main Outcome Measures  (1) Histopathologic disease in the dura in patients who had dural resection and (2) Oncologic outcomes (5-year local recurrence, dural recurrence, disease-specific survival, and overall survival) in patients with and without dural resection, and patients with and without skull base erosion. Results  Thirty-seven patients were included. The occult rate of dural invasion was 54%. Patients with dural resection had improved margin control versus those without dural resection (90% vs 56%, p  = 0.02). Dural resection improved 5-year overall survival only in patients with esthesioneuroblastoma compared with bony skull base resection alone (100% vs 75%, p  = 0.03). Patients with skull base erosion had reduced local control versus those without erosion (63% vs 93%, p  = 0.047). Conclusion  This study suggests a substantial rate of occult dural invasion despite no overt imaging findings. Dural resection may be associated with improved margin control, but no oncologic benefit except for esthesioneuroblastomas, although treatment heterogeneity and small sample size may limit conclusions.

Surgical management of skull base tumors

AIM

To present a review of the contemporary surgical management of skull base tumors.

BACKGROUND

Over the last two decades, the treatment of skull base tumors has evolved from observation, to partial resection combined with other therapy modalities, to gross total resection and no adjuvant treatment with good surgical results and excellent clinical outcomes.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The literature review of current surgical strategies and management of skull base tumors was performed and complemented with the experience of Barrow Neurological Institute.

RESULTS

Skull base tumors include meningiomas, pituitary tumors, sellar/parasellar tumors, vestibular and trigeminal schwannomas, esthesioneuroblastomas, chordomas, chondrosarcomas, and metastases. Surgical approaches include the modified orbitozygomatic, pterional, middle fossa, retrosigmoid, far lateral craniotomy, midline suboccipital craniotomy, and a combination of these approaches. The selection of an appropriate surgical approach depends on the characteristics of the patient and the tumor, as well as the experience of the neurosurgeon.

CONCLUSION

Modern microsurgical techniques, diagnostic imaging, intraoperative neuronavigation, and endoscopic technology have remarkably changed the concept of skull base surgery. These refinements have extended the boundaries of tumor resection with minimal morbidity.

Advantage of Extended Craniofacial Resection for Advanced Malignant Tumors of the Nasal Cavity and Paranasal Sinuses: Long-Term Outcome and Surgical Management

OBJECTIVE

Craniofacial resection (CFR) for advanced sinonasal malignant tumors (SNMTs) is mandatory for radical resection. Surgeons must be aware of perioperative complications and long-term outcome because this procedure is extremely invasive, especially when the tumor involves the anterior skull base.

METHODS

Thirty-eight consecutive surgical patients with advanced SNMT of T4 stage or Kadish stage C (31 men and 7 women; mean age, 55 years; range: 19-76 years) treated with CFR in the past 28 years were followed up for 59.4 months. In cases of unilateral orbital extension, en-bloc resection was achieved using several neurosurgical techniques (extended CFR) from 2005 onwards. Herein, we evaluated the safety and effectiveness of surgery by comparing survival data between 2 time periods (first stage: 1984-2004, second stage: 2005-2012).

RESULTS

Squamous cell carcinoma was the most common histological type observed (65.8%), followed by esthesioneuroblastoma (15.8%). Using a combination of adjuvant radiation therapy, the 5-year overall survival and the 5-year disease-specific survival rates were 55.5% and 59.4%, respectively. Sarcomatous histology was a poor prognostic factor. The 5-year disease-specific survival rate was 48.9% in the first stage and improved to 82.1% in the second stage (P = 0.057); this was related to improvements in local control rate.

CONCLUSIONS

CFR and postoperative radiotherapy are safe and effective for treating advanced SNMTs. Extended CFR, including radical orbital exenteration, may contribute to good long-term outcomes. A diverse surgical team may help perform radical resection and reconstruction in patients with advanced tumors.