Relationships between intraoral ultrasonographic and histopathological findings in patients with tongue cancer

Head Neck. 2021 Sep;43(9):2778-2785. doi: 10.1002/hed.26763. Epub 2021 May 29.

Abstract

Background: In this study, we aimed to investigate the relationships between histopathological and intraoral ultrasonographic (IUS) findings in patients with tongue cancer.

Methods: IUS and histopathological findings in 46 patients with tongue cancer were considered for this study. We assessed the relationships between IUS findings regarding tumor thickness, margin type, border type, and internal echo intensity; internal/peripheral Doppler findings; and muscle invasion and histopathological findings regarding tumor thickness, differentiation, Yamamoto-Kohama (YK)-classification grade, blood vessel invasion, lymphatic invasion, perineural invasion, and muscle invasion.

Results: Statistical associations were found between the following findings: between thickness determined through IUS measurement and that determined through histopathological measurement, between the IUS findings regarding tumor margin and border types and the histopathologically determined YK-classifications grades, and between a Doppler image of the internal area of tongue lesions and lymphatic invasion.

Conclusions: IUS findings may be used to predict histopathological findings about tumor thickness and YK-classification grades.

Keywords: histopathology; intraoral ultrasonography; squamous cell carcinoma; tongue cancer.

MeSH terms

  • Carcinoma, Squamous Cell* / diagnostic imaging
  • Carcinoma, Squamous Cell* / pathology
  • Humans
  • Lymphatic Metastasis
  • Margins of Excision
  • Neoplasm Invasiveness / pathology
  • Neoplasm Staging
  • Tongue Neoplasms* / diagnostic imaging
  • Tongue Neoplasms* / pathology
  • Ultrasonography, Doppler