Adenocarcinoma of the ethmoid sinus: Retrospective study of 42 cases

SummaryObjectivesRetrospective analysis of the oncological results and morbidity of ethmoid sinus adenocarcinoma surgery, and identification of survival factors.Material and methodsForty-two patients were treated from 1990 to 2009. The study covered clinical presentation, medical imaging, histologic data, TNM grade, treatment, morbidity and overall recurrence-free survival.ResultsForty-one men and one woman, with mean age at diagnosis of 61.5 years, were included. 85.7% had been exposed to wood dust. Twenty patients (47.6%) were graded T4 at diagnosis. Thirty-three (78.5%) were treated by surgery followed by radiation therapy; nearly half of these showed recurrence. Overall specific 5-year survival was 44.2% at 5 years and recurrence-free 5-year survival 46.4%. The factors of poor prognosis found were cerebromeningeal or orbital invasion and local recurrence.ConclusionThis series confirms the epidemiological literature on ethmoid adenocarcinoma and the influence of poor prognosis factors. Survival depended directly on local tumor control and seemed to be enhanced on an isolated transfacial approach.