Patterns of Recurrence in Electively Irradiated Lymph Node Regions After Definitive Accelerated Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy for Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma

An important risk factor was identified that can help clinicians in the pretreatment risk assessment of borderline-sized lymph nodes. Not overtly pathologic nodes with a summed diameter ≥17 mm may require a higher than elective radiation therapy dose. For low-risk elective regions (all nodes <17 mm), the safety of dose de-escalation below the traditional 45 to 50 Gy should be investigated.