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A Lack of Adequate Data

Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 1998;124:353.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

CLAYMAN and Frank have tackled an interesting, important, and potentially impossible topic. The problem, I fear, is lack of adequate data to truly resolve the issue. I am a proponent of elective neck dissections in patients at risk of having occult metastases from primary sites in the upper respiratory and digestive tracts. The histological evaluation thus afforded provides invaluable information to the patient and the treatment team regarding prognosis and the potential need for adjuvant therapy. At the conclusion of the 20th century, this is the best we can do to "biologically stage" these patients.

The authors lend insight into a couple of the potential problems regarding selective neck dissection. The procedure is technically demanding and requires fastidious attention to detail. In addition, the "at risk" lymphatics cannot be clearly defined for every anatomic site. If the appropriate lymphatics are not sampled, it stands to reason that the information generated . . . [Full Text of this Article]

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