Chemoradiation for inoperable head and neck cancer using intravenous chemotherapy is as effective as treatment with chemotherapy given directly to the tumor through an intra-arterial catheter, according to a presentation at the annual meeting of the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology.

“We were surprised about the findings because previous studies that were not randomized found that intra-arterial chemoradiation was more effective than intravenous treatment,” said Coen Rasch, MD, PhD, lead author of the study and a radiation oncologist at the Netherlands Cancer Institute/Antoni van Leeuwenhoek Huis in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

“Since intravenous chemoradiation is an easier treatment procedure for patients and doctors, it should be considered the standard of care for inoperable head and neck cancer.”

The study compared intra-arterial with intravenous chemoradiation in 240 patients with inoperable head and neck cancer who were randomized to one of the delivery routes.

The study regimen used a combination of radiation and cisplatin. Tumor growth was controlled to the same extent by each treatment method.