Head And Neck Cancer

Rates of late-stage head and neck cancer increased in the United States between 2004 and 2015, propelled by rising incidence among white men, according to study results published in Cancer.

The FDA expanded the clearance of a cryoablation technology platform for the treatment of cancerous and benign tumors of the kidney; liver; and ear, nose or throat, according to a press release from the product’s manufacturer.

Increased awareness of melanoma among the general public has led many people to adopt sun-protection practices, perform melanoma self-exams and take precautions for their children.

The superoxide dismutase mimetic GC4419 appeared to safely and significantly reduce the duration, incidence and severity of radiation-induced severe oral mucositis compared with placebo among patients with head and neck cancer, according to results of a randomized phase 2b study published in Journal of Clinical Oncology.

Tipifarnib induced durable objective responses among patients with metastatic or recurrent head and neck squamous cell carcinoma with HRAS mutations, according to results of a single-arm phase 2 study presented at AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics.

Thyroid cancer is among the most curable types of cancer, with relative survival rates close to 100% for localized and regional tumors. Incidence of the malignancy has increased rapidly, with about 52,000 new cases diagnosed each year in the United States, according to American Cancer Society data. Fine-needle aspiration, which is the current standard in thyroid cancer diagnostics, yields inconclusive results in about one of every five cases. In these cases, patients often undergo a follow-up genetic test, which is prone to false-positive results. This may prompt surgical intervention, which can lead to lifetime hormone replacement therapy and other repercussions and ultimately may prove unnecessary. FNA [fine-needle aspiration] samples based on cytology is very challenging, and thyroid surgery may be required for the final diagnosis,” Jialing Zhang, PhD, research associate at The University of Texas at Austin, said in an interview with HemOnc Today. “However, in the majority of these surgical cases, the lesion is found to be benign on final histopathology, and the diagnostic surgery was therefore possibly unnecessary.”

The National Academy of Medicine announced the election of 90 regular members and 10 international members.

Higher levels of anxiety and depression among patients with cancer appeared to be associated with more severe disease-related pain, according to study results scheduled for presentation at Supportive Care in Oncology Symposium.

Researchers at Purdue University and Indiana University School of Medicine have developed a novel chemoradiotherapy formulation that could decrease treatment-associated adverse events among patients with advanced head and neck cancer.

A combination of palbociclib and cetuximab demonstrated substantial antitumor activity among patients with platinum- or cetuximab-resistant HPV-unrelated head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, according to results of a multigroup phase 2 trial published in The Lancet Oncology.