Abstract
Nasopharyngeal carcinoma of undifferentiated type is an endemic cancer with a high incidence in Southern China, Taiwan, and Singapore, followed by North African countries and Alaska. Despite intensive definitive treatment, regrettably about 30% of patients still suffer from loco-regional relapse or even distant metastasis. Palliative chemotherapy has been the standard treatment for those whose disease is not amenable to further radical surgery or a second course of radiotherapy. Though mainly given with palliative intent, this form of chemotherapy can achieve excellent symptom control and prolong survival. More recently targeted therapy has also been widely evaluated in metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Here we provide a comprehensive review on the use of various types of palliative chemotherapy and targeted therapy for recurrent and metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma by searching the MEDLINE and PubMed databases from 1980 to March 2013. The key words used were “nasopharyngeal”, “nasopharynx”, “recurrent”, “metastatic”, “chemotherapy”, “targeted therapy”, and “immunotherapy”.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
