Assessing the oral microbiome of head and neck cancer patients before and during radiotherapy.

Objective: To characterize the oral microbiome of patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) before and during radiotherapy (RT), compared to healthy individuals. Evaluating the impact of oral microbiome in the clinical outcomes one year following the end of RT.

Methods: Oral samples were collected from HNSCC patients who underwent RT using the following regimens: no dose received (T0), dose 12-16 Gy (T1), dose 30-36 Gy (T2) and dose ≥ 60 Gy (T3).

Scales to graduate oral mucositis: What are the limitations?

Oral mucositis is a common acute complication of a head and neck squamous cell carcinoma treatment. Multiple scales can be used to diagnose and grade this lesion, but they all have some limitation regarding this group of patients. Most of these issues are associated with the hardness to differentiate signs and symptoms from oral mucositis vs.