Phase 1 Dose Escalation of Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy and Concurrent Cisplatin for Reirradiation of Unresectable, Recurrent Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Head and Neck.

Purpose: Patients with locoregional recurrence of squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (SCCHN) have relatively poor outcomes; therefore, stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) has been investigated for this patient population. We performed a phase 1 clinical trial to establish a maximum tolerated dose of SBRT with concurrent cisplatin in previously irradiated locoregional SCCHN.

Methods And Materials: Patients with recurrent SCCHN who had previously undergone radiation therapy to doses ≥45 Gy to the area of recurrence ≥6 months before enrollment and who were not surgical candidates or refused surgery were eligible.

Long-Term Update of NRG/RTOG 0522: A Randomized Phase 3 Trial of Concurrent Radiation and Cisplatin With or Without Cetuximab in Locoregionally Advanced Head and Neck Cancer.

Purpose: The combination of cisplatin and radiation or cetuximab and radiation improves overall survival of patients with locoregionally advanced head and neck carcinoma. NRG Oncology conducted a phase 3 trial to test the hypothesis that adding cetuximab to radiation and cisplatin would improve progression-free survival (PFS).

Methods And Materials: Eligible patients with American Joint Committee on Cancer sixth edition stage T2 N2a-3 M0 or T3-4 N0-3 M0 were accrued from November 2005 to March 2009 and randomized to receive radiation and cisplatin without (arm A) or with (arm B) cetuximab.

African American Specific Gene Panel Predictive of Poor Prostate Cancer Outcome.

Purpose: Most prostate cancer in African American men lacks the ETS (E26 transforming specific) family fusion event (ETS-). We aimed to establish clinically relevant biomarkers in African American men by studying ETS dependent gene expression patterns to identified race specific genes predictive of outcomes.

Materials And Methods: Two multicenter cohorts of a total of 1,427 men were used for the discovery and validation (635 and 792 men, respectively) of race specific predictive biomarkers.

Patient choice for high-volume center radiation impacts head and neck cancer outcome.

Background: Studies suggest treatment outcomes may vary between high (HVC)- and low-volume centers (LVC). Radiation therapy (RT) for head and neck cancer (HNC) requires weeks of treatment, the inconvenience of which may influence a patient's choice for treatment location. We hypothesized that receipt of RT for HNC at a HVC would influence outcomes compared to patients evaluated at a HVC, but who chose to receive RT at a LVC.

Viral hepatitis associated hepatocellular carcinoma outcomes with yttrium-90 radioembolization.

Background: Viral associated (VA) malignancies have recently been correlated with improved outcomes. We sought to evaluate outcomes of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with and without viral hepatitis (hepatitis B and C) treated with lobar yttrium-90 radioembolization (Y-90 RE).

Methods: After IRB approval, an institutional database of patients with HCC who received RE between 2009-2014 was queried and 99 patients were identified that received a total of 122 lobar RE.

Low-dose-rate Brachytherapy for Prostate Cancer in Low-resource Settings.

Purpose: In areas with limited health care, it is important to identify and implement effective treatment methods and to optimize available resources. We investigated the implementation of a low-dose-rate (LDR) brachytherapy program for the treatment of prostate cancer (PCa) in a low-resource setting such as Puerto Rico (PR), where PCa is the main cause of cancer-associated death.

Methods And Materials: After institutional approval, the medical records of patients with nonmetastatic PCa undergoing LDR brachytherapy from 2008 to 2013 were reviewed from PR.

The impact of body mass index on dosimetric quality in low-dose-rate prostate brachytherapy.

Purpose: Low-dose-rate (LDR) brachytherapy has been established as an effective and safe treatment option for men with low and intermediate risk prostate cancer. In this retrospective analysis, we sought to study the effect of body mass index (BMI) on post-implant dosimetric quality.

Material And Methods: After institutional approval, records of patients with non-metastatic prostate cancer treated in Puerto Rico with LDR brachytherapy during 2008-2013 were reviewed.

Treatment delays, race, and outcomes in head and neck cancer.

Purpose: Patient race has been shown to predict for differences in outcomes and has been attributed to socioeconomic factors such as social support and access to healthcare. In head and neck cancer (HNC), a disease without recommended screening, we sought to investigate the association between race, treatment delays and outcome.

Methods: Records of 1802 patients with non-metastatic squamous cell HNC treated between 1998 and 2013 were retrospectively assessed from an institutional database.

Management of Oropharyngeal Cancer in the HPV Era.

Background: Historically, oropharyngeal cancer (OPC) has been attributed to risk factors such as smoking and alcohol use. The increased incidence of OPC has been driven by human papillomavirus (HPV) infection.

Methods: A search of the literature involving HPV infection and OPC was performed, along with a search of ongoing clinical trials regarding HPV-positive OPC.

Having Medicaid insurance negatively impacts outcomes in patients with head and neck malignancies.

Background: Patients covered by Medicaid insurance appear to have poorer cancer outcomes. Herein, the authors sought to test whether Medicaid was associated with worse outcomes among patients with head and neck cancer (HNC).

Methods: The records of 1698 patients with squamous cell HNC without distant metastatic disease were retrospectively reviewed from an institutional database between 1998 and 2011.