OBJECTIVES: 7,538 new cases of SCCHN were diagnosed in 2006 and 2,594 deaths reported in 2007 in the UK. For patients with resectable SCCHN surgical resection followed by postoperative radiation therapy remains a common treatment approach. For locoregional disease control chemotherapy is also an important treatment component. METHODS: This retrospective analysis was based on inpatient and outpatient records extracted from Hospital Episode Statistic database. SCCHN patients with resection of oral cavity, pharynx or larynx between 2003-07-01 and 2008-03-31 were followed for at least one year (max. of 5 years) from the surgery date. RESULTS: There were 38,460 patients diagnosed with SCCHN in the dataset. 11,403 patients met the inclusion criteria for the study. Mean age was 63.2 years and 69.8% were male. Mean length of follow-up was 31.0 months. In the first year, mean length of hospitalization was 21.6 days and mean number of outpatient visits was 4.2.  Mean number of reconstructive and secondary surgeries per patient was 0.32 and 0.14, respectively in the first year. Mean number of radiotherapy and chemotherapy sessions per patient was both 0.45 in the first year. Total costs of post-operative healthcare utilization in the patient cohort was £249.4 million over 5 years with 90% (£225.5 million) occurring within the first year. Mean cost was £19,778 for the first year and £1477, £847, £653 and £455 for years 2-5. Inpatient care costs accounted for 96% of total costs with hospitalization contributing to 85% of these costs. CONCLUSIONS: Given limited outpatient data in the HES, radiotherapy and chemotherapy utilization and costs in the outpatient setting are likely to be underestimated. However, results still indicate that treatment of resected SCCHN in the UK is associated with significant healthcare utilization and costs. This suggests the need for new therapies that could improve outcomes and reduce the economic burden.