A data-mining framework for large scale analysis of dose-outcome relationships in a database of irradiated head and neck cancer patients.

Purpose: To develop a hypothesis-generating framework for automatic extraction of dose-outcome relationships from an in-house, analytic oncology database.

Methods: Dose-volume histograms (DVH) and clinical outcomes have been routinely stored to the authors' database for 684 head and neck cancer patients treated from 2007 to 2014. Database queries were developed to extract outcomes that had been assessed for at least 100 patients, as well as DVH curves for organs-at-risk (OAR) that were contoured for at least 100 patients.

Variations in Symptom Severity Patterns Among Oropharyngeal and Laryngeal Cancer Outpatients During Radiation Treatment: A Pilot Study.

Background: Pain, difficulty swallowing, dry mouth, taste change, appetite loss, and mouth sores are associated with radiotherapy (RT). Knowledge of individual symptom patterns (ISPs) and differences among patients during RT can provide vital information for evaluation and delivery of patient-tailored care.

Objective: The objectives of this study were to identify and describe ISPs and symptom duration, resolution, and peak severity among outpatients with oropharyngeal and laryngeal cancer.

Effect of gabapentin on swallowing during and after chemoradiation for oropharyngeal squamous cell cancer.

The aim of this study was to examine the impact of gabapentin (neurontin) on swallowing and feeding tube use during chemoradiation (CRT) for oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC), and physiologic swallowing outcomes following completion of treatment. A total of 23 patients treated for OPSCC with concurrent CRT and prophylactically treated for pain using gabapentin were assessed. Historical controls were matched for T stage and primary site of disease.