Onco-epidemiological features of head and neck tumors within the competence of the otorhinolaryngological service across the regions of the Republic of Belarus

Abstract

Objective. To analyze the onco-epidemiological features of head and neck tumors within the competence of the otorhinolaryngological service across the regions of the Republic of Belarus.Materials and methods. The material for the study was data on 21,533 cases of malignant neoplasms of the head and neck (including laryngeal tumors) registered in the Belarusian Cancer Registry from 2009 to 2018.Results. Significant changes have occurred in the structure of the incidence of head and neck malignant neoplasms over the past decade. The leading positions are occupied by such tumors of visual localization as cancer of the oropharynx (14.9 %), the floor of the oral cavity (12.4 %), tonsils (11.4 %) and tongue (excluding the root of the tongue) (11.4 %), which are available for diagnosis during routine clinical examination.Conclusion. The analysis of newly diagnosed cases of malignant neoplasms depending on the localization has showed that regardless of the availability of otorhinolaryngologists and staffing levels, patients with primary manifestations of the tumor process are not timely referred to the health experts for morphological verification, which requires further organizational decisions on patient referral at different levels of health care and defining the role and scope of responsibility of subject-matter primary care specialists.