Chemoradiotherapy for locally advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the oropharynx: Does completion of systemic therapy affect outcomes?

Locally advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the oropharynx (LA-OPC), defined as stage III–IVB disease per the current American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) 7th edition staging manual, remains difficult to treat [1]. Recommended treatment options are diverse but universally include radiation therapy with the potential addition of preceding surgical resection, induction chemotherapy, and concurrent systemic agents [2,3]. In the setting of definitive radiation therapy for LA-OPC, multiple clinical trials have demonstrated significant advantage to the addition of concurrent systemic therapies, namely improving local control, disease-free survival, and overall survival [4–10].

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