Pilot study: volatile organic compounds as a diagnostic marker for head and neck tumors.

Background: In the last decade, the analysis of volatile organic compounds (VOC) has undergone a rapid development. In this pilot study, patients with HNSCC were tested with a proton transfer reaction-mass spectrometry in order to establish a minimal invasive screening method.

Methods: Overall in a period of 2 years, 22 carcinoma patients were recruited for the study.

Resection of accessory parotid gland tumors through a peroral approach with facial nerve monitoring.

Accessory parotid glands are an anatomic variation. Pathologic alterations, which occur in these tissues, are related to those found in the parotid gland. At this time, first-line therapy consists of total resection.

Antitumor activity of CTFB, a novel anticancer agent, is associated with the down-regulation of nuclear factor-kappaB expression and proteasome activation in head and neck squamous carcinoma cell lines.

This study aimed to characterize the antitumor activity of 5-Chloro-N-[2-[2-(4-chloro-phenyl)-3-methyl-butoxy]-5-trifluoromethyl-phenyl]-2-hydroxy-benzamide (CTFB), a novel anticancer agent, in head and neck cancer cell lines, FaDu, SCC-25 and cisplatin-resistant CAL-27. CTFB was generated as a result of an extensive medicinal chemistry effort on a lead compound series discovered in a high-throughput screen for inducers of apoptosis. All cell lines showed significant growth delay in response to CTFB treatment at a concentration of 1 micromol/L with 17.

N-chlorotaurine--a new safe substance for postoperative ear care.

Objectives: The new endogenous substance N-chlorotaurine (NCT), which for the first time was synthesized and introduced into clinical practice by our research group, was now used for postoperative ear care following tympanoplasty. The antiseptic and drying effect of NCT was evaluated and compared to the standard postoperative procedure in our department.

Methods: Prospective randomized trial on 10 patients.

Rituximab enhances radiation-triggered apoptosis in non-Hodgkin's lymphoma cells via caspase-dependent and - independent mechanisms.

Rituximab (RTX), a chimeric human anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody, is currently employed in the treatment of malignant non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) either alone or in combination with other cytotoxic approaches. The present study examines the effects of ionizing radiation in combination with RTX on proliferation and apoptosis development in B-lymphoma RL and Raji cells. RTX was used at a concentration of 10 microg/mL 24 hours prior to irradiation at a single dose of 9 Gy.

In vitro study on the influence of N-chlorotaurine on the ciliary beat frequency of nasal mucosa.

Background: The aim of this study was to investigate the in vitro effects of N-chlorotaurine (NCT), a new endogenous antimicrobial agent, on the nasal ciliary beat frequency (CBF) in nasal mucosa samples of 10 adult patients who underwent conchotomy.

Methods: CBF was measured by a photometric technique, combining a light microscope, a photometer, a photograph multiplier, and a computed analyzing unit.

Results: CBF decreased approximately 10% after 20 minutes of incubation in aqueous 1% NCT solution compared with 3% in 0.