SynthesisHead & neck2026
Longitudinal Patterns of Radiation-Associated Dysphagia in Patients With Head and Neck Cancer: A Systematic Review.
Synthesis in Head & neck, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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
2 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Longitudinal Patterns of Radiation-Associated Dysphagia in Patients With Head and Neck Cancer: A Systematic Review.Head & neck · 2026Pooled it
- Timing matters: gastrostomy placement and outcomes in patients with head and neck cancer undergoing chemoradiotherapy.Frontiers in nutrition · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo investigate the diagnostic profile of early (i.e., < 6 months of treatment) and late (i.e., ≥ 6 months of treatment) radiation-associated dysphagia (RAD) in patients with head and neck cancer. MATERIALS AND
methodsThe literature was queried from inception to July 19, 2024. Outcomes included patient-reported outcome measures, aspiration prevalence, pharyngoesophageal stricture rate, and gastric tube presence. Data were collected at various time points from baseline up to 24 months post-treatment; longer-term data beyond 24 months was descriptively summarized. Meta-analysis of continuous measures (mean) and proportions (%) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) was performed.
resultsOf 2881 abstracts identified, 99 studies (N = 15 578 patients) were included. Mean age was 58.4 years; 78.9% of patients were male. M.D. Anderson Dysphagia Inventory composite scores were 71.2 (CI: 66.8-75.6) at 3 months and 82.8 (CI: 79.2-86.3) at 24 months, signifying improvement in swallowing-related quality of life. Aspiration prevalence was 28.4% (CI: 11.6-49.1) at 3 months and 8.8% (CI: 0.13-28.7) at 24 months. Stricture rate was 21.2% (CI: 9.7-15.2) at 6 months and 9.1% [CI: 3.0-17.9] at 24 months. Gastric tube presence declined from baseline (44.5% [CI: 36.8-52.4]) to 6 months (12.3% [CI: 9.7-16.6]) and fluctuated from 1 to 10 years post-treatment (range: 4.14% [CI: 2.7-5.9] to 9.17% [CI: 5.5-14.2]).
conclusionRAD severity peaks within 3 months post-treatment, with improvement by 6 months. However, even at 2 years post-treatment, a substantial number of patients continue to experience clinically significant dysphagia. These findings highlight the persistent burden of RAD, underscoring the need for proactive longer-term dysphagia evaluation and management in this population.
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