STUDY TO ASSESS HEARING LOSS IN PATIENTS RECEIVING CHEMORADIOTHERAPY IN ADJUVANT SETTING FOR HEAD AND NECK MALIGNANCY

Head andneck cancers in India account for 30% of all cancers. In India, 60 to 80 % ofpatients present with advanced disease as compared to 40% in developedcountries.Chemoradiotherapy (CTRT) is the most common modalityof treatment for advanced head and neck cancers.

Radiation induced sensorineuralhearing loss (SNHL) is an important side effect as the temporal bone is oftenincluded in the field of radiation.It is usually high frequencySNHL that occurs either during or 6-24 months after therapy and may progress tocomplete deafness. The widely used chemotherapeutic drug, cisplatin, is alsoknown to cause ototoxicity, thus adding to the SNHL.

This hearing impairment can causesignificant disability in these patients especially in cases of binauralhearing loss, hence this should be kept in mind during the pre- radiotherapycounseling and post-radiotherapy follow-up of these patients. Manyof the previous reports were based on studies that were either retrospective orinvolved a limited number of patients. The aim of this study is the qualitativeand quantitative assessment of hearing loss in patients receiving CTRT inadjuvant settings for head and neck malignancy.