외이도 악성 종양의 경과

The outcome of malignant tumors of the external auditory canal

Cancer of the external auditory canal is infrequent, with an incidence of approximately 1 to 6 per million populations per year, but ominous aggressive tumor with a poor prognosis. According to the classification of skull base tumor, proposed by Irish et al., the cancer is region Ⅲ, which arise within or around the temporal bone and extend intracranially into the posterior fossa or middle cranial fossa. The surgical treatments varied from local canal to total temporal bone resection for en bloc removal of the tumor. Radiotherapy was used either alone or in combination with surgery. But the managements lack uniformity, largely due to the rarity of the disease, the demanding extirpative surgery and the lack of a universally accepted staging system. The important anatomic structures around the temporal bone have precluded global clearance of radical surgery, which has been associated with considerable morbidity and mortality in patients who are often old and frail. Also, in many series there were insufficient times of follow-up to permit a valid assessment of results. Therefore, in spite of the small number of cases the authors’experience might be helpful for determining the treatment modality for cancer of the external auditory canal