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Issue: Vol. 51 No. 7 (2026): JOURNAL OF MILITARY PHARMACO-MEDICINE No.7 - 2026
Section: Articles
DOI: 10.56535/jmpm.v51i7.1954
Date Published: 28/07/2026
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Nguyen, N. V., Nguyen, T. T., & Ho, X. T. (2026). VALUE OF COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY IN ASSESSING TUMOR SIZE AND DEPTH OF INVASION IN ORAL TONGUE CANCER. Journal of Military Pharmaco-medicine, 51(7), 91-99. https://doi.org/10.56535/jmpm.v51i7.1954

VALUE OF COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY IN ASSESSING TUMOR SIZE AND DEPTH OF INVASION IN ORAL TONGUE CANCER

Ngoc Vinh Nguyen1, Thanh Thao Nguyen2, Xuan Tuan Ho1,3,
1 Ho Chi Minh City Oncology Hospital
2 The University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Hue University
3 Da Nang University of Medical Technology and Pharmacy

Main Article Content

Abstract

Objectives: To evaluate the diagnostic value of computed tomography (CT) in assessing tumor size and depth of invasion (DOI) in oral tongue cancer in comparison with surgical and histopathological findings. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study with analytical components was conducted in 38 surgically treated patients with oral tongue cancer at Ho Chi Minh City Oncology Hospital between July, 2024 and April, 2025. Results: CT identified the lesion site with a sensitivity of 100.0%, specificity of 50.0%, and substantial agreement with surgical findings (Kappa = 0.655). The pathological tumor size was significantly larger than the CT-measured size (p = 0.049), and the distribution of tumor size categories between the two methods showed a statistically significant difference (p < 0.001). CT tended to overestimate the DOI compared to histopathology (p < 0.001); however, the distribution of DOI subgroups (< 5mm, 5 - 10mm, and > 10mm) was comparable between CT and histopathology (p = 0.224). The proportion of tumors with DOI > 10mm was 44.7% on CT compared with 31.6% on histopathology. Conclusion: CT is a valuable imaging modality in the preoperative assessment of oral tongue cancer, particularly in defining lesion localization. However, it tends to underestimate tumor size and overestimate DOI compared with surgical and histopathological findings.

Keywords

Computed tomography, Oral tongue cancer, Depth of invasion, Histopathology

Article Details

References

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