Wioletta Pietruszewska
Wioletta Pietruszewska is a full professor and board-certified specialist in otorhinolaryngology, allergology, audiology, and phoniatrics. She serves as Head of the Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Oncology at the Medical University of Łódź, Poland.
Her main research interests include head and neck oncology, laryngological allergy, and voice and swallowing disorders. She has authored over 150 scientific publications and received multiple national awards, including the Foundation for Polish Science Award for the best medical dissertation, the Prof. Jan Miodoński Scientific Award, and several Rector’s distinctions.
She has completed international fellowships and over 90 clinical courses across leading academic centers in Europe, supported by the American-Austrian Foundation and the Batory Foundation.
Prof. Pietruszewska has chaired two international conferences „Head and Neck Oncology 2025. Advances in Otolaryngology” (Oct 2 - 4, Łódź, Poland) and “Otology 2017” (Sep 28-30, Łódź, Poland) and is actively involved in national and international societies, including the Polish Society of Otolaryngologists, Head and Neck Surgeons (serving as national treasurer and regional chair), the Polish Society of Allergology, EHNS, IFHNOS, European Respiratory Society, UEP Voice Committee.
As a long-standing mentor, she leads the Student Research Society and supervises specialty training and doctoral research in otolaryngology.
Session
Background and rationale:
high-definition white light endoscopy (WLE) remains the standard-of-care for evaluating early laryngeal lesions, providing high-resolution surface and color information. However, WLE has well-recognized limitations. Early dysplasia may lack clear surface changes, while benign inflammatory lesions can mimic malignancy, resulting in sensitivity values as low as 51% in some studies.
the quintessential clinical dilemma is vocal fold leukoplakia—a descriptive term encompassing a wide histopathological spectrum, from benign hyperkeratosis to invasive squamous cell carcinoma (piazza et al., 2010). Because WLE cannot reliably predict histopathological severity, management remains highly controversial. Some clinicians advocate routine surgical biopsy due to the risk of occult carcinoma, while others support conservative observation in low-risk cases (peretti et al., 2017). This uncertainty results in a significant healthcare burden driven by repeated surveillance, unnecessary biopsies, and the risk of delayed diagnosis.
role of narrow band imaging (NBI):
NBI has emerged as a critical adjunct by enhancing the visualization of intraepithelial papillary capillary loops (ipcls), thereby improving the detection of neoplastic vascular patterns (piazza and peretti, 2012). Recent literature demonstrates a strong correlation between NBI vascular patterns and histopathological outcomes, improving diagnostic precision and aiding in the prediction of malignant transformation in leukoplakia (lin et al., 2020; pietruszewska et al., 2021).
despite its growing acceptance, NBI is not a panacea. It remains highly dependent on operator expertise and is subject to diagnostic pitfalls, particularly in post-radiotherapy mucosa and lesions with deep submucosal extension.