Distant metastases in newly diagnosed tongue squamous cell carcinoma

OBJECTIVE: To characterize the incidence and survivals of patients with distant metastases in newly diagnosed tongue squamous cell carcinoma. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients with distant metastases in newly diagnosed tongue squamous cell carcinoma were collected from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database. Data were classified by sex, age, race, insurance status, T stage, N stage and grade. Multivariable logistic and Cox regression were used to demonstrate risk factors of the presence of distant metastases and hazards related to mortality, respectively. RESULTS: We found 92 patients with distant metastases in newly diagnosed tongue squamous cell carcinoma, including lung, bone, liver, and brain, representing 1.08% of the entire cohort. 69 were male and 23 were female. Median survival among patients with distant metastases was 4.0 months. CONCLUSION: The study describes the incidence and prognosis of patients with distant metastases in newly diagnosed tongue squamous cell carcinoma based on population estimates. The findings lend support to closely monitor the development of distant metastases among patients with predictors at the time of diagnosis of tongue squamous cell carcinoma.