Table 1. Summary of patient and tumour characteristics.
| Number of patients | 20 |
| Age (years), median (range) | 62 (53–70) |
| Sex (%) | |
| Female | 6 (30) |
| Male | 14 (70) |
| Primary site (%) | |
| Oropharynx | 15 (75) |
| Hypopharynx/larynx | 4 (20) |
| Sinonasal | 1 (5) |
| HPV status for oropharynx (%) | |
| Positive | 10 (66) |
| Negative | 5 (34) |
| T-stage (%) | |
| 1 | 1 (5) |
| 2 | 7 (35) |
| 3 | 7 (35) |
| 4 | 5 (25) |
| N-Stage (%) | |
| 0 | 3 (15) |
| 1 | 2 (10) |
| 2 | 15 (75) |
| Induction chemotherapy (%) | |
| Cisplatin/5-FU | 8 (40) |
| Carboplatin/5-FU | 5 (25) |
| TPF | 6 (30) |
| None | 1 (5) |
| Concomitant chemotherapy (%) | |
| Cisplatin | 9 (45) |
| Carboplatin | 11 (55) |
| Hb at first presentation (%) | |
| <11.5 g dl−1 | 3 (15) |
| >11.5 g dl−1 | 17 (85) |
Abbreviations: Hb=haemoglobin; HPV=human papillomavirus; TPF=docetaxel, cisplatin, 5-fluorouracil; 5-FU=5-fluorouracil.