Published online by Cambridge University Press: 29 June 2007
We treated 114 patients with advanced inoperable head and neck cancer with a combined-modality protocol that included two cycles of chemotherapy followed by radiotherapy or three cycles of chemotherapy and in 18 patients with a radiosensitizing agent. At the beginning of the treatment all but one patient presented with a stage IV cancer. With a follow-up of 42–58 months, four patients are alive (three from the radiosensitizing group and one of the chemotherapy group). Complete response after the radiosensitizing agent correlated with superior prolonged disease-free survival in comparison to complete responses after chemotherapy at the level of p<0.009.