OBJECTIVETo present the experience and advantage of cooperation management by head and neck surgery and neurosurgery for communicating skull base tumors.

METHODSA review of 54 communicating skull base tumors (benign tumor 21, malignant tumor 33) cooperation resection by head and neck surgery and neurosurgery from July 2005 to July 2008 in the Cancer Hospital of Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences was presented. The tumor originated in the anterior skull base in 19 cases, originated in the lateral skull base in 12, in the central skull base in 17, and in the posterior skull base in 6.

RESULTSAll procedures were conducted in a single stage by a multidisciplinary team. Total resection of tumor was achieved in 45 cases, and subtotal resection was achieved in 9. There was no operative death. There were 2 cases postoperative hemorrhage. All cases except 3 were followed up with a period of 8 to 43 months (median, 19.1 months for benign tumor and 21.0 months for malignant tumor). Three patients with malignant tumor were lost. Twelve cases of malignant tumor and one case of benign tumor recurred postoperatively. Nine patients with malignant tumor had died (one of these died from heart trouble). Three-year disease-free survival rates and overall survival rates of malignant tumor were 52.7% and 53.0%, respectively.

CONCLUSIONSIt suggested that a special operative team constituted of head and neck surgeon and neurosurgeon may improve the outcome of the difficult skull base tumors.