Improved recurrence rates and progression-free survival in primarily surgically treated oral squamous cell carcinoma – results from a German tertiary medical center

This study aimed to explore survival and recurrence patterns in patients undergoing primarily surgical treatment for oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) at a high-volume tertiary medical center in Germany. The study included 421 patients with primary OSCC who underwent radical tumor resection, neck dissection, and reconstruction with a free flap. Prognostic relevance of clinicopathological characteristics was assessed using Cox proportional-hazards models. Kaplan-Meier method estimated local recurrence-free survival, progression-free survival (PFS), and overall survival (OS), while the log-rank test compared survival outcomes between groups. Recurrence manifested in 16.63