Modified TPEx as First-line Treatment for Recurrent and/or Metastatic Head and Neck Cancer.

Background/aim: To retrospectively evaluate the efficacy and safety of modified TPEx (docetaxel 60 mg/m on day 1, cisplatin 60 mg/m on day 1, and weekly cetuximab 250 mg/m with loading dose of 400 mg/m) followed by maintenance cetuximab as first-line treatment for inoperable recurrent and/or metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck.

Patients And Methods: We analyzed 22 Japanese patients receiving modified TPEx every 21 days for four cycles with or without prophylactic granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF).

Results: The best overall response rate was 55% [95% confidence interval (CI)=35-73].

Metabolic tumor volume of primary tumor predicts survival better than T classification in the larynx preservation approach.

We aimed to determine whether pretreatment metabolic tumor volume of the primary tumor (T-MTV) or T classification would be a better predictor of laryngectomy-free survival (LFS) and overall survival (OS) after chemoradiotherapy in patients with locally advanced laryngeal or hypopharyngeal cancer requiring total laryngectomy. We analyzed 85 patients using a Cox proportional hazards model and evaluated its usefulness by Akaike's information criterion. A T-MTV cut-off value was determined by time-dependent receiver operating characteristic curve analysis.

Development and validation of a new comorbidity index for patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma in Japan.

Due to habitual drinking and smoking and advanced age at diagnosis, patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) frequently present with comorbidities. Several comorbidity indices have been developed and validated for HNSCC. However, none have become the standard method.

Factors predicting severe infections during chemotherapy in head and neck cancer patients.

Conclusions: The head and neck cancer patients with more co-morbidities and those dependent on tube feeding are at a high risk of severe infections during chemotherapy. Therefore, prophylaxis with colony-stimulating factors and/or antibiotics should be considered for those patients.

Objectives: To investigate the risk factors for severe infection during chemotherapy in head and neck cancer patients.

Docetaxel, cisplatin, and fluorouracil for patients with inoperable recurrent or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

Objective: The first-line treatment for inoperable recurrent or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) has long been the combination of cisplatin and fluorouracil (PF). Recently, cetuximab has been shown to provide an additional survival benefit to PF. It remains unknown whether docetaxel adds additional benefits to PF.

Prognostic significance of serum squamous cell carcinoma antigen in patients with head and neck cancer.

Conclusions: Serum squamous cell carcinoma antigen (SCC-Ag) level was an independent prognostic factor for survival in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC), and the prognostic value depended on the carcinoma site.

Objectives: To assess the value of SCC-Ag as a prognostic indicator in patients with HNSCC and to determine the effect of primary tumor site on prognosis.

Methods: We reviewed 493 patients with HNSCC between 2004 and 2012.

Volumetric PET/CT parameters predict local response of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma to chemoradiotherapy.

It is not well established whether pretreatment (18) F-FDG PET/CT can predict local response of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) to chemoradiotherapy (CRT). We examined 118 patients: 11 with nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC), 30 with oropharyngeal cancer (OPC), and 77 with laryngohypopharyngeal cancer (LHC) who had completed CRT. PET/CT parameters of primary tumor, including metabolic tumor volume (MTV), total lesion glycolysis (TLG), and maximum and mean standardized uptake value (SUVmax and SUVmean ), were correlated with local response, according to primary site and human papillomavirus (HPV) status.

Limitation of 2-deoxy-2-[F-18]fluoro-D-glucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) to detect early synchronous primary cancers in patients with untreated head and neck squamous cell cancer.

Objective: Patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) often develop synchronous multiple primary cancers. It is important to detect second primary cancer in HNSCC patients, because it influences treatment selection of primary cancer. The aim of this study was to evaluate the utility of 2-deoxy-2-[F-18]fluoro-D-glucose (FDG)-positron emission tomography (PET) for detecting synchronous primary cancers at the initial staging of patients with HNSCC.

A case of anaplastic lymphoma kinase-positive large B-cell lymphoma: aspiration cytology findings.

Anaplastic lymphoma kinase-positive (ALK+) large B-cell lymphoma (LBCL) is a rare subtype of non-Hodgkin B-cell lymphoma that exhibits a more aggressive clinical course and poorer prognosis than the typical diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. In this study, we report the case of a 67-year-old man with left cervical lymph node swelling. Aspiration cytology revealed many clusters of cohesive, large, and solitary cells.

Shock sensitization and fear potentiation of auditory startle response in hamsters.

It is well known that an auditory startle response can be modulated by several processes. In the present study shock sensitization and fear potentiation were examined in 17 hamsters to assess whether response enhancement is similar for another rodent. Immediately after presentation of electrical foot shocks, the auditory startle response increased significantly.

[New operation for sulcus vocalis--laser vaporization of the sulcus with fat injection].

Although several treatments for sulcus vocalis have been reported, the condition continues to be known as an extremely intractable vocal disorder even now. We report the good outcome of a new treatment for sulcus vocalis. The operation was performed under intubated general anesthesia.