Follow-up after treatment of squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity: Current maxillofacial practice in the United Kingdom

Although patients are commonly reviewed after primary treatment for squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the oral cavity, there is little evidence about the frequency and duration of such a review. To try and obtain further information about current practice within the United Kingdom we used a structured telephone questionnaire to contact 50 units. Most of them (n = 40, 80%) had developed follow-up protocols, and 38 (76%) reviewed patients for 5 years. All units examined patients monthly for the first year, and 90% of patients were seen 2-monthly for the following year. Slight variations for follow-up existed in years 3 and 4, but by the fifth year, 6-monthly review was almost universal (96%). Despite this surprising concordance, few units implemented a risk-adapted follow-up protocol that was aimed at targeting those people likely to be cured of relapsing disease.