Distribution of cervical lymph node metastases from squamous cell carcinoma of the upper respiratory and digestive tracts

The records of 2,044 patients with previously untreated squamous cell carcinomas of the head and neck were reviewed in order to define the incidence and topographical distribution of lymph node metastasis on admission. The common regions of metastasis are presented for each of the seven individual head and neck sites selected for study. Knowledge of the preferred areas of spread and those that are almost never involved allows the design of more adequate plans to manage the individual lesions.