Ultrasound of the abdomen and total bone scintigraphy in patients with cancer of the head and neck.

In this prospective study, the patients with head and neck cancer admitted to the Department of Otolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, Haukeland University Hospital, underwent examination with ultrasound of the abdomen (112 patients) and total bone scintigraphy (118 patients) in the primary staging of the disease and before the start of treatment. In only one patient did we find metastases of head and neck cancer in the liver by these additional investigations, and one patient was found to have bone metastases. No second primary cancers were found by these extra examinations. One patient was found to have an asymptomatic aorta aneurysm and was in need of urgent surgical treatment. Based on these findings, we nowadays only use ultrasound of the abdomen and total bone scintigraphy as part of the general examination of new head and neck patients in selected cases.