Although
photodynamic therapy (
PDT) for the treatment of
head and neck cancer has proved useful in other departments (J. Feyh, A. Goetz and W. Muller,
Photodynamic therapy in head and neck surgery, J. Photochem. Photobiol. B: Biol., 7 (1990) 353-358; V.G. Schweitzer,
Photodynamic therapy for treatment of
head and neck cancer, Arch. Otolaryngol. Head Neck Surg., 102 (1990) 225-232; B.L. Wenig, D.M. Kurtzmann and L.I. Grossweiner,
Photodynamic therapy in the treatment of
squamous cell carcinomas of the head and neck, Arch. Otolaryngol. Head Neck Surg., 116 (1990) 1267-1270), it is not a standard
therapy at the ENT Department of the University Clinic Innsbruck.
PDT has only been applied in a few selected cases.
Photosan 3 (dihaematoporphyrin either, DHE) was used as
photosensitizer at a dose of 2.5 mg (kg
body weight)-1 administered intravenously 24-48 h prior to photoirradiation. In one case,
Photosan 3 was applied topically in a
solution with 40%
dimethylsulphoxide (
DMSO). The light source was an
argon dye laser with a wavelength of 630 nm and a power of 100 mW cm-2, coupled with a cylindrical or spherical applicator and a lens fibre tip. Patients suffering from
cancer of the palatine arch, tonsil, nasal septum and glottis are reported. These selected cases had previous treatment (e.g.
chemotherapy, percutaneous irradiation and surgery), and
PDT was either performed as a
palliative treatment for recurrence or in elderly patients to avoid inappropriate extensive and mutilating surgery.