Background: In recent years, particle therapy has shown promise as a local treatment for salivary gland carcinoma (SGC); however, its efficacy and safety remain unclear. This study aimed to evaluate the clinical outcomes of intensity‐modulated proton therapy (IMPT) for SGC.Methods: We performed a single‐institution retrospective analysis of patients with SGC who underwent IMPT.Results: IMPT was performed on 28 SGC patients, of which 18 were for definitive treatment and 10 were for postoperative treatment. The 2‐year overall survival (OS), progression‐free survival (PFS), and local control (LC) rates for definitive treatment cases were 70.1%, 25.0%, and 82.5%, respectively. The 2‐year OS, PFS, and LC rates for postoperative treatment cases were 100%, 80.0%, and 90.0%, respectively. Quality of life scores in the EORTC QLQ‐C30 and QLQ‐HN35 were preserved for 1 year after treatment.Conclusions: Our study suggests the efficacy and safety of IMPT in SGC patients.

Background: The NTRK fusion gene is detected in most salivary gland secretory carcinomas. While tropomyosin receptor kinase (TRK) inhibitors are used for various solid tumors with the fusion gene, there are no reports regarding TRK inhibitor use for unresectable parotid gland carcinomas that subsequently shrink and become resectable. Here, we report a case of salivary gland secretory carcinoma in which conversion surgery was performed after TRK inhibitor use. Methods: The patient was a 33‐year‐old man with a left parotid gland tumor. Examinations revealed a tumor invading the poststyloid compartment and ETV6 ‐ NTRK3 fusion gene expression. Results: Entrectinib administration shrunk the tumor to a size surgically resectable with an adequate margin. The patient underwent total parotidectomy with left supraomohyoid neck dissection. Conclusions: Conversion surgery and TRK inhibitor use were effective against unresectable parotid gland carcinoma with the NTRK fusion gene. The case provides a reference for conversion surgery use for unresectable parotid gland carcinomas.

Objectives: This study investigates the association of pretreatment underweight, sarcopenia, and cancer cachexia with survival outcome in hypopharyngeal cancer (HPC) radiotherapy. Methods: This retrospective observational study analyzed 167 patients with newly diagnosed HPC treated with definitive radiotherapy. The definitions of underweight, sarcopenia, and cancer cachexia are based on the international consensus of the European Palliative Care Research Collaborative. Underweight and sarcopenia were analyzed in all 167 patients, while cachexia analyses were restricted to the 117 patients for whom pretreatment weight-loss data were available. Survival outcomes were estimated using the Kaplan–Meier method and compared using the log-rank test, and subsequently analyzed using multivariate Cox proportional hazards models. Results: The median follow-up period was 28 months. Cachexia analyses were restricted to the 117 patients for whom pretreatment weight-loss data were available; of these, 45 (38%) met criteria for cancer cachexia. Patients with underweight (n = 76, 46%) or cancer cachexia had significantly lower locoregional control, disease-free survival, and overall survival compared to those not underweight and without cachexia, respectively, whereas there was no difference in any outcome between patients with sarcopenia (n = 54, 32%) and those without. Given the definitional overlap among underweight, sarcopenia, and cachexia, these three variables were entered into the multivariate analysis separately—which included age, sex, performance status, double cancer, T-classification, N-classification, chemotherapy administration, treatment era, and radiation dose—confirming that underweight and cancer cachexia remained independently associated with worse LRC, DFS, and OS. In the fully adjusted multivariate Cox proportional hazards models, the hazard ratios for mortality risk were 1.9 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.1–3.4; p = 0.030) and 2.0 (95% CI, 1.1–3.8; p = 0.032) for patients with underweight or cancer cachexia, respectively. Conclusions: Pretreatment underweight and cancer cachexia negatively impact survival outcomes, including locoregional control, in HPC radiotherapy. Prospective studies with standardized nutritional assessment protocols, pre-specified intervention arms, and sufficient sample sizes are essential to validate these findings and to establish the clinical benefit of pre-treatment nutritional optimization in this patient population.