Mandibular lingual release versus mandibular lip-split approach for expanded resection of middle–late tongue cancer: A case-control study

Comparison of long‐term outcomes between pull‐through resection and mandibular lip‐split surgery for T4a tongue/floor of mouth cancers

“…Comparative studies on the mandibular lip‐split and the pull‐through techniques for resection of tongue/FOM cancers were scarce . Although similar status of the resection margins and analogous recurrence rates were reported, previous studies frequently included only cases with relatively small tumors.…”

“…Devine et al reviewed 20 patients with oral cancer who were operated by 1 of these 2 techniques, among them, 18 had tumors that ranged from 2 to 3.9 cm (T1‐T2). In the study of Li et al, all of the 56 matched cases had T2 to T3 tumors. Although, in 1 study, T4 tumors were included in the analysis, a large number of patients had T1 to T3 lesions .…”

“…As for the surgical resection of advanced tongue/FOM cancers, 2 approaches, the mandibular lip‐split and the pull‐through techniques, are commonly used. Division of the lower lip and mandible for good accessibility to the oral cavity or oropharynx has been widely used in the past several decades and has been popularized under different names, such as midline labiomandibular splitting, lip‐splitting mandibulotomy or mandibular swing, and mandibular lip‐split . In contrast, the pull‐through technique was initially reported as a combined en bloc resection of tongue cancers and cervical lymphatics with the preservation of mandibular and lip structures .…”

“…In contrast, the pull‐through technique was initially reported as a combined en bloc resection of tongue cancers and cervical lymphatics with the preservation of mandibular and lip structures . Similar lip‐sparing approaches have also been described as the visor flap and the mandibular lingual release …”

“…The pull‐through approach for tongue/FOM cancers preserving both the lower lip and the mandible was also reported to provide adequate surgical access and results in good healing and aesthetics . Although both techniques have their advocates, studies directly comparing the outcomes between the mandibular lip‐split and the mandibular lip‐sparing approaches for tongue/FOM cancers are rare . In these comparative studies, tumors of various stages were included, which makes interpretation of the results difficult.…”