SynthesisThe Laryngoscope2025
A Systematic Review of Occult Contralateral Neck Metastasis in Tonsillar Squamous Cell Carcinoma.
Synthesis in The Laryngoscope, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed.
- How Would You Treat? A Case-Vignette Study of Provider Treatment Preferences in Human Papillomavirus-Mediated Oropharyngeal Cancer.Head & neck · 2026Article
- [Neck dissection-more, less, targeted?]HNO · 2026Review
- Lymph Node Metastasis in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma: Evolving Prognostic Markers, Molecular Insights, and Implications for Precision Staging.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Isolated palatine tonsillar metastasis from urinary bladder tumor sparing lymph nodes: a case report.Journal of surgical case reports · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo determine the prevalence of occult contralateral nodal metastasis in tonsillar squamous cell carcinoma (TSCC) in patients who have undergone bilateral neck dissection. DATA SOURCE: A systematic review of English articles identified from PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science databases. REVIEW
methodsSearch terms included "oropharynx," "carcinoma," "lymph node," and "neck dissection." Two reviewers independently screened abstracts, reviewed full texts, and extracted data from all studies that presented the prevalence of contralateral occult nodal metastasis in TSCC.
resultsThe overall prevalence of occult contralateral nodal metastasis was 10%. The prevalence was 8% for cT1/T2 tumors, 19% for cT3/T4, 1% for N0 in the ipsilateral neck, and 12% for N+. Occult contralateral lymph nodes were most frequently found in neck level II (81%) and level III (19%). No metastatic nodes were found in level I.
conclusionElective neck dissection of the contralateral neck in TSCC is controversial due the historic morbidity caused by the surgery. A widely accepted recommendation suggests performing an elective neck dissection when the prevalence of occult metastasis is between 15% and 20%. The results of this study suggest that elective contralateral neck dissection will identify occult positivity in 19% of patients with T3/T4 tonsil cancer. In T1/T2 or N0 tumors, the diagnostic yield would be considerably lower at 8% and 1%, respectively. Contralateral nodal sampling could be considered based on patient preference after adequate counseling on the risks/benefits of occult nodal detection. More research is needed on other nodal features to formulate treatment guidelines. Laryngoscope, 135:27-33, 2025.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.