Trends in Surgical Research in Head and Neck Cancer

Abstract

The task of surgical research is to improve the efficacy of available surgical therapeutic modalities, develop new ones, and balance this well with favorable functional outcome. Therefore, surgical research is composed of a translational and a clinical component. In translational surgical research, animal models are used to better understand the biology of head and neck cancers, but even more importantly, the biology of changes to the disease and the microenvironment created by surgical interventions. Animal models additionally allow for the development of image-guided surgery systems, novel strategies of intraoperative adjuvant treatment, and patient "avatars" to test innovative anticancer drug combinations. In clinical surgical research, surgical techniques are validated in clinical trials for effectiveness of tumor control and improvement of functional recovery of the patient. In conclusion, surgical research for head and neck cancer is an active field spanning across the entire breadth of basic and clinical science devoted to a better understanding of what surgery does to the disease and to the patient.

Heterogeneity of the Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma Immune Landscape and Its Impact on Immunotherapy

“…Compelling evidence suggests that the immune landscape of HPV (+) HNSCCs differs from HPV (-) tumors in that the HPV (+) TME is associated with abundant immune infiltrates, whereas the HPV (-) TME incurs high mutational load. Currently, clinical treatment of HNSCC patients with either conventional chemo/radiotherapy regimens or the most recent advanced immunotherapy showed less favorable overall survival than patients with other tumor types receiving similar treatments, indicating the detrimental effects of an immunosuppressed HNSCC TME (Haddad and Shin, 2008; Curry et al, 2014; Schoenfeld, 2015; Tolstonog and Simon, 2017; Bray et al, 2018).…”

“…Currently, the majority of head and neck cancers present with regionally advanced with lymph node metastases at the time of diagnosis. The patients are often given the standard treatment options of surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, or a combination of these interventions, but 40–60% of treated patients experience recurrence and are unresponsive to subsequent therapeutic interventions (Haddad and Shin, 2008; Tolstonog and Simon, 2017). Therefore, despite the significant improvement in overall survival (OS) for patients with other tumor types, the 5-year OS rate of HNSCCs has not changed much over the past decade (Jemal et al, 2011; Torre et al, 2015; Bray et al, 2018).…”

A Glycosyltransferase-Related Signature for Predicting Overall Survival in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma

“…The 5-year survival rate of HNSCC patients is approximately 43% ( Epstein et al, 2012 ; Chi et al, 2015 ). Approximately 40–60% of patients relapse even after a combination of surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy ( Tolstonog and Simon, 2017 ). Therefore, it is important to evaluate the prognosis of HNSCC patients.…”

Postoperative Complications of Free Flap Reconstruction in Moderate-Advanced Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma: A Prospective Cohort Study Based on Real-World Data

“…During this period, surgery has remained the most common and effective treatment for primary HNSCC (2). Radical resection for moderate-advanced HNSCC involves large-scale tumor resection and neck dissection (ND), and some procedures involve free flap reconstructions and tracheostomy (3,4). Even if the defect is repaired and reconstructed intraoperatively, a decline or loss of important functions and aesthetics is common after a major operation (2,5).…”