Induction chemotherapy for squamous cell carcinomas of the oral cavity: a cumulative meta-analysis

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Abstract Induction chemotherapy (ICT) is a controversial treatment for head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC). Despite numerous randomized controlled trials (RCTs), a majority do not have enough statistical power alone to conclude ICT’s treatment value among oral squamous carcinoma patients (OSCC) since many addressed HNSCC as one entity instead of by specific subtypes. By performing a systematic review and cumulative meta-analysis, we aim to determine the benefits of ICT in OSCC therapy. A literature search identified for RCTs comparing OSCC patients who received ICT against those without. Log-hazard ratio, and relative risk were used for comparison. Heterogeneity was determined using the I 2 statistic package. The primary endpoint was overall survival (OS), followed by disease-free survival (DFS), locoregional recurrence (LRR) and distant metastasis (DM) as secondary endpoints. RESULTS: 27 randomized trials were included for analysis (n = 2872 patients). The shortest median follow-up was 15 months whereas the longest was 11.5 years. ICT does not improve OS (HR = 0.947, 95% CI 0.85–1.05, p = 0.318), DFS (RR = 1.05, 95% CI 0.92–1.21, p = 0.462) and DM (RR = 0.626, CI 95% 0.361–1.086, p = 0.096) compared to locoregional treatment alone. However, there was a significant improvement to LRR (RR = 0.778, 95% CI 0.622–0.972, p = 0.027). There is no evidence ICT improves survival outcomes for OSCC patients. However, ICT reduces locoregional recurrence of OSCC, which may need further verification.