Partial Least Square Discriminant Analysis Discovered a Dietary Pattern Inversely Associated with Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Risk.

Evidence on the association between dietary component, dietary pattern and nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is scarce. A major challenge is the high degree of correlation among dietary constituents. We aimed to identify dietary pattern associated with NPC and to illustrate the dose-response relationship between the identified dietary pattern scores and the risk of NPC.

An Ultra-Deep Targeted Sequencing Gene Panel Improves the Prognostic Stratification of Patients With Advanced Oral Cavity Squamous Cell Carcinoma.

An improved prognostic stratification of patients with oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and pathologically positive (pN+) nodes is urgently needed. Here, we sought to examine whether an ultra-deep targeted sequencing (UDT-Seq) gene panel may improve the prognostic stratification in this patient group.A mutation-based signature affecting 10 genes (including genetic mutations in 6 oncogenes and 4 tumor suppressor genes) was devised to predict disease-free survival (DFS) in 345 primary tumor specimens obtained from pN+ OSCC patients.

Human Papillomavirus Infections are Common and Predict Mortality in a Retrospective Cohort Study of Taiwanese Patients With Oral Cavity Cancer.

Human papillomavirus (HPV) infections are deemed to play a role in the pathogenesis of oral cavity cancer (OCC). However, their exact prevalence and clinical significance remain unclear. Herein, we investigated the prevalence and prognostic value of HPV infections in a large sample of Taiwanese OCC patients.

Fascin is a circulating tumor marker for head and neck cancer as determined by a proteomic analysis of interstitial fluid from the tumor microenvironment.

Background: Head and neck cancer (HNC) is a prevalent cancer worldwide; however, clinically useful tumor markers for HNC have not been identified. Here, we aimed to identify secretory proteins from the tumor microenvironment as candidate circulating tumor markers.

Methods: Samples derived from seven pairs of tumor interstitial fluid (TIF) and normal interstitial fluid (NIF) samples from patients with HNC were analyzed.

OncomiR-196 promotes an invasive phenotype in oral cancer through the NME4-JNK-TIMP1-MMP signaling pathway.

Background: MicroRNA-196 (miR-196), which is highly up-regulated in oral cancer cells, has been reported to be aberrantly expressed in several cancers; however, the significance of miR-196 in oral cancer has not yet been addressed.

Methods: Cellular functions in response to miR-196 modulation were examined, including cell growth, migration, invasion and radio/chemosensitivity. Algorithm-based studies were used to identify the regulatory target of miR-196.

Laryngoscopic characteristics in vocal leukoplakia: inter-rater reliability and correlation with histology grading.

Objectives/hypothesis: Vocal cord leukoplakia is a clinical diagnosis that comprises a spectrum of benignities, premalignancies, and malignancies. Accurate recordings of the visual characteristics of the affected area are important for communication between physicians and are helpful in further management. The objective of this study was to determine the laryngoscopic characteristics among patients with vocal cord leukoplakia and the reliability of examinations between different raters.

Human papillomavirus 16/18 E7 viral loads predict distant metastasis in oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma.

Background: Human papillomaviruses (HPV) seem to be related to distant metastasis (DM) in advanced oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) patients.

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate whether high-risk HPV viral load may predict DM among OSCC patients and stratify patients for risk-adapted treatment.

Study Design: Viral loads of E7 oncogenes for HPV 16/18 were measured by quantitative PCR tests in paraffin-embedded lesional specimens from 312 OSCC of which the HPV genotypes had been determined previously.

Using SCC antigen and CRP levels as prognostic biomarkers in recurrent oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma.

Squamous cell carcinoma antigen (SCC-Ag) and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels have been successfully used to stratify risk groups in primary oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) patients; however, related biomarkers have rarely been investigated in recurrent OSCC. The purpose of the present study was to analyze the relationships of SCC-Ag and CRP levels at the time of recurrence with clinical factors and prognosis. We retrospectively recruited patients with recurrence in a cohort of 534 OSCC patients between March 2001 and July 2013.

The role of elective neck dissection in early stage buccal cancer.

Objectives/hypothesis: The benefits of elective neck dissection (END) in early-stage tongue cancer have been widely discussed but are still controversial regarding early-stage buccal cancer. In this study, we evaluate the role of END and the treatment outcome in early-stage buccal cancer in an areca-quid endemic area.

Study Design: Retrospective case-control study.

Concurrent chemoradiotherapy using cisplatin, tegafur, and leucovorin for advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the hypopharynx and oropharynx.

Background: To evaluate the efficacy and adverse events of cisplatin, tegafur, and leucovorin concomitantly with radiotherapy for patients with advanced, non-metastatic squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the oropharynx and hypopharynx.

Methods: The PTL regimen consisted of cisplatin (P) 50 mg/m 2 on day 1, oral tegafur (T) 800 mg/day plus leucovorin (LV) 60 mg/day on days 1 through 14. It was repeated every 2 weeks through the radiotherapy course.

Clinical evidence of field cancerization in patients with oral cavity cancer in a betel quid chewing area.

Objectives: We sought to investigate whether there is evidence of field cancerization in patients with oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) enrolled in a betel quid chewing area. We also assessed whether betel quid chewing is an independent risk factor for field cancerization in OSCC patients.

Methods: We retrospectively examined the records of 1570 OSCC patients who underwent radical tumor resection between 1996 and 2011.

Postoperative concomitant chemoradiotherapy improved treatment outcomes of patients with oral cavity cancer with multiple-node metastases but no other major risk factors.

Purpose: To investigate the results of postoperative radiotherapy (PORT) for the treatment of pathologic N2b/c squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity (OSCC).

Materials And Methods: This study reviewed cancer registry data collected in our hospital from 1998 to 2009 with the following inclusion criteria: primary OSCC, treatment with radical surgery, and multiple nodal metastases. Patients who had extracapsular spreading of the lymph node metastases or positive resection margins or who refused to undergo PORT were excluded.

Serum CXCL9 levels are associated with tumor progression and treatment outcome in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Objectives: The aim of this cohort study was to examine the role of the chemokine (C-X-C motif) ligand 9 (CXCL9) on nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).

Materials & Methods: Sera from 205 NPC patients and 231 healthy individuals, and 86 NPC tumor samples were enrolled. CXCL9 expression in tissue samples was analyzed by quantitative real-time PCR and immunohistochemistry.

Tumor volumetry as a prognostic factor in the management of T4a laryngeal cancer.

Objectives/hypothesis: The role of tumor volume in T4a laryngeal cancer remains unclear among different treatment modalities. Using tumor volumetry, we investigated the impact of primary tumor volume on this subset of patients.

Study Design: Retrospective cohort study of 62 T4a laryngeal cancer patients.

Clinical significance in oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma of pathogenic somatic mitochondrial mutations.

Somatic mutations affecting the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) have been frequently observed in human cancers and proposed as important oncological biomarkers. However, the clinical significance of mtDNA mutations in cancer remains unclear. This study was therefore performed to explore the possible clinical use in assessing oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) of pathogenic mtDNA mutations.

Office-based narrow band imaging-guided flexible laryngoscopy tissue sampling: A cost-effectiveness analysis evaluating its impact on Taiwanese health insurance program.

Background/purpose: Narrow band imaging (NBI)-guided flexible laryngoscopy tissue sampling for laryngopharyngeal lesions is a novel technique. Patients underwent the procedure in an office-based setting without being sedated, which is different from the conventional technique performed using direct laryngoscopy. Although the feasibility and effects of this procedure were established, its financial impact on the institution and Taiwanese National Health Insurance program was not determined.

Increasing rates of low-risk human papillomavirus infections in patients with oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma: association with clinical outcomes.

Background: Although human papillomavirus (HPV) infections have been causally linked to oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), the potential role of low-risk HPV (LR-HPV) types in the pathogenesis of this malignancy remains unclear.

Objectives: We sought to investigate the distribution of HPV genotypes and their prognostic significance in OSCC patients treated by radical surgery, either with or without adjuvant therapy.

Study Design: We studied two non-overlapping OSCC cohorts for the periods 2005-2006 (2005 cohort, n = 204) and 2010-2011 (2010 cohort, n = 206).

Refining the role of preoperative C-reactive protein by neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio in oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma.

Objectives/hypothesis: Elevated inflammatory biomarkers such as C-reactive protein (CRP) and the recently identified neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio (NLR) were demonstrated to be associated with prognosis in human cancers. The aim of our present study is to analyze the relationship of preoperative levels of CRP and NLR with clinicopathological factors and prognosis in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) patients.

Study Design: Retrospective study.

Pre-treatment levels of C-reactive protein and squamous cell carcinoma antigen for predicting the aggressiveness of pharyngolaryngeal carcinoma.

The levels of squamous cell carcinoma antigen (SCC-Ag) and C-reactive protein (CRP) can be used to predict tumor invasion, lymph node metastasis, staging and survival in patients with oral cavity cancer. The present study analyzed the relationship between pre-treatment levels of SCC-Ag and CRP in relation to clinicopathological factors in patients with pharyngolaryngeal cancer (PLC) and determined whether elevated levels of CRP and SCC-Ag were associated with tumor metabolic activity via [18F] fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET). We retrospectively recruited one hundred and six PLC patients between June 2008 and December 2011.

The comparison between weekly and three-weekly cisplatin delivered concurrently with radiotherapy for patients with postoperative high-risk squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity.

Background: The aim of this study was to compare the outcomes of postoperative adjuvant concomitant chemoradiotherapy using two different schedules of cisplatin for patients with high-risk oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC).

Methods: From Feb. 2008 to Aug.

The mitochondrial DNA Northeast Asia CZD haplogroup is associated with good disease-free survival among male oral squamous cell carcinoma patients.

Reprogramming of energy metabolism in cancer cells has been directly/indirectly linked to mitochondria and mitochondrial functional defects and these changes seem to contribute to the development and progression of cancer. Studies have indicated that mitochondrial DNA haplogroups are associated with risk in relation to various diseases including cancer. However, few studies have examined the effect of haplogroups on cancer prognosis outcome.

Pretreatment (18)F-FDG PET standardized uptake value of primary tumor and neck lymph nodes as a predictor of distant metastasis for patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Objectives: To evaluate the prognostic value of maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax) measured in [(18)F]-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography ((18)F-FDG PET) for patients with non-disseminated nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).

Materials And Methods: From January 2002 to July 2008, 371 NPC patients who underwent (18)F-FDG-PET before radical intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) were recruited. The SUVmax was recorded for the primary tumor (SUVmax-T) and neck lymph nodes (SUVmax-N).

Comparative outcomes in oral cavity cancer with resected pT4a and pT4b.

Objectives: We have previously shown that the resection outcomes of cT4a and cT4b oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) are comparable, but whether similar conclusions can be applied for the pathological stage of this disease needs investigation. In this study, we sought to compare the outcomes and to identify the risk factors for both pT4a and pT4b tumors.

Methods: We retrospectively examined 181 pT4 OSCC patients who had radical resections between 2003 and 2010.

Evaluation of human leukocyte antigen-A (HLA-A), other non-HLA markers on chromosome 6p21 and risk of nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Background: The association between human leukocyte antigen (HLA) genes (located in the Major Histocompatibility Complex [MHC] region of chromosome 6p21) and NPC has been known for some time. Recently, two genome-wide association studies (GWAS) conducted in Taiwan and China confirmed that the strongest evidence for NPC association was mapped to the MHC region. It is still unclear, however, whether these findings reflect direct associations with Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) genes and/or to other genes in this gene-rich region.

Outcome analyses of unusual site neck recurrence in oral cavity cancer.

Aim: To understand the frequency, clinical significance, and benefits of salvage therapy in oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) patients with regional nodal recurrence at unusual sites (prelaryngeal area, parotid area, and retropharyngeal area).

Methods: We examined 178 patients with neck recurrence at levels I-V (usual group) and 26 patients outside levels I-V (unusual group). The 5-year survival rates served as the main outcome measure.