INTRODUCTION
DM, tumor, Tumor, head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, Malignant Tumors, head and neck (, extranodal extension, HNSCC, tumors, AJCC, Cancer
DISEASE PROGRESSION, TUMOR, RECURRENCE, METASTASIS, TUMOR, MALIGNANT TUMOR, TUMORS, CANCER
Cervical lymph node (LN) metastasis is an adverse prognostic factor in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). Furthermore, extranodal extension (ENE) is linked to a higher recurrence rate and distant metastasis (DM), and as a consequence, it has a negative prognostic value regarding the 5‐year overall survival (OS) rate.The eighth edition of the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) Cancer Staging Manual and the UICC TNM Classification of Malignant Tumors made substantial changes to the classifications of different head and neck (H&N) tumors.Tumor deposits (TDs) are defined as cancerous nodules composed of aggregates of tumor cells unrelated to locoregional LNs. Although TDs are included in the extracapsular group in the latest AJCC TNM staging, their significance as a prognostic indicator has been widely acknowledged in the literature.The aim of this study is to detect the presence of TDs in HNSCC samples and analyze their association with other clinical variables, OS, and disease progression, compared to cases where ENE is present.