Oncologic Safety of Close Margins in Patients With Low- to Intermediate-Grade Major Salivary Gland Carcinoma.

Importance: Postoperative radiation therapy for close surgical margins in low- to intermediate-grade salivary carcinomas lacks multi-institutional supportive evidence.

Objective: To evaluate the oncologic outcomes for low- and intermediate-grade salivary carcinomas with close and positive margins.

Design, Setting, And Participants: The American Head and Neck Society Salivary Gland Section conducted a retrospective cohort study from 2010 to 2019 at 41 centers.

PI16 reticular cells in human palatine tonsils govern T cell activity in distinct subepithelial niches.

Fibroblastic reticular cells (FRCs) direct the interaction and activation of immune cells in discrete microenvironments of lymphoid organs. Despite their important role in steering innate and adaptive immunity, the age- and inflammation-associated changes in the molecular identity and functional properties of human FRCs have remained largely unknown. Here, we show that human tonsillar FRCs undergo dynamic reprogramming during life and respond vigorously to inflammatory perturbation in comparison to other stromal cell types.

Conserved stromal-immune cell circuits secure B cell homeostasis and function.

B cell zone reticular cells (BRCs) form stable microenvironments that direct efficient humoral immunity with B cell priming and memory maintenance being orchestrated across lymphoid organs. However, a comprehensive understanding of systemic humoral immunity is hampered by the lack of knowledge of global BRC sustenance, function and major pathways controlling BRC-immune cell interactions. Here we dissected the BRC landscape and immune cell interactome in human and murine lymphoid organs.

Prediction of extranodal extension in oropharyngeal cancer patients and carcinoma of unknown primary: value of metabolic tumor imaging with hybrid PET compared with MRI and CT.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the value of metabolic tumor imaging using hybrid PET for the preoperative detection of extranodal extension (ENE) in lymph node metastases of oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC).

Methods: We performed a retrospective analysis of a consecutive cohort of patients with OPSCC treated with primary surgery with or without adjuvant (chemo-) radiotherapy at the Kantonsspital Sankt-Gallen and the University Hospital Zurich, Switzerland, from 2010 until 2019. Hybrid PET was compared to conventional cross-sectional imaging with MRI and CT.

Prevalence of Transcriptionally Active HPV Infection in Tumor-Free Oropharyngeal Tissue of OPSCC-Patients.

Objectives: The natural history of HPV-related oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) is still largely unknown. Since reports of second primary tumors (SPTs) in patients with HPV-related OPSCCs are increasing, a multifocal HPV infection, hinting a «virus-induced field effect», has been hypothesized. This study aimed to investigate the HPV-prevalence in normal appearing oropharyngeal tissue in patients with OPSCCs.

Distinct microbial communities colonize tonsillar squamous cell carcinoma.

Squamous cell carcinoma of the tonsil is one of the most frequent cancers of the oropharynx. The escalating rate of tonsil cancer during the last decades is associated with the increase of high risk-human papilloma virus (HR-HPV) infections. While the microbiome in oropharyngeal malignant diseases has been characterized to some extent, the microbial colonization of HR-HPV-associated tonsil cancer remains largely unknown.

Impact of the new TNM Staging System (8th edition) on oral tongue cancers.

Aim Of The Study: For tumours of the oral tongue, the most recent 8th edition of the AJCC/UICC staging system has introduced depth of infiltration (DOI) as a novel parameter. With this study we wanted to investigate its impact regarding this risk stratification compared with the preceding 7th edition.

Methods: Between 2008 and 2017, 161 patients of two tertiary referral centres in Switzerland (Kantonsspital St.

Development and Validation of a Prognostic Model of Swallowing Recovery and Enteral Tube Feeding After Ischemic Stroke.

Importance: Predicting the duration of poststroke dysphagia is important to guide therapeutic decisions. Guidelines recommend nasogastric tube (NGT) feeding if swallowing impairment persists for 7 days or longer and percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) placement if dysphagia does not recover within 30 days, but, to our knowledge, a systematic prediction method does not exist.

Objective: To develop and validate a prognostic model predicting swallowing recovery and the need for enteral tube feeding.

Comparison of contemporary staging systems for oropharynx cancer in a surgically treated multi-institutional cohort.

Background: Between the publication of the Union of International Cancer Control staging system (UICC) 7th and 8th editions, other staging algorithms for oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) were proposed from Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG), MD Anderson Cancer Center (MDACC), and Yale University.

Methods: With C-statistics, the above-mentioned five staging algorithms were compared for overall and relapse-free survival endpoints in a multi-institutional cohort of OPSCC cases (n = 338) treated with primary surgery.

Results: Pathological UICC 8th ed yielded the highest C-indexes in the entire cohort and in the HPV- subset, whereas MDACC was superior for HPV+ OPSCC.

Preoperative assessment of CD44-mediated depth of invasion as predictor of occult metastases in early oral squamous cell carcinoma.

Background: Epithelial-mesenchymal transition and cancer stem-like cells (CSC) have been linked to increased metastatic potential. We evaluated the prognostic impact of CD44, a CSC biomarker, on depth of invasion (DOI) and outcome in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC).

Methods: Using a multivariable logistic regression model, we evaluated in early OSCCs the relationship between CD44 expression at the invasive tumor front, DOI, sentinel lymph node biopsy, extension of nodal involvement, and survival.

Prognostic significance of cell cycle-associated proteins p16, pRB, cyclin D1 and p53 in resected oropharyngeal carcinoma.

Background: Human papillomavirus (HPV)-related oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) has an improved outcome and may allow for treatment de-escalation. High-risk HPV (HR-HPV) infection is associated with deregulated expression of the cell cycle-associated proteins p16, pRB, cyclin D1 and p53. The objective of this study was to assess cell cycle proteins as potential surrogate markers for HR-HPV DNA testing to identify OPSCC with favorable prognosis after resection.

Comparison of PI3K Pathway in HPV-Associated Oropharyngeal Cancer With and Without Tobacco Exposure.

Objectives: The aim of the study was to evaluate whether HPV associated OPSCC with tobacco exposure follows a different carcinogenic pathway compared to HPV associated OPSCC without tobacco exposure and to investigate its prognostic significance. The question was addressed with focus on components of the PI3K pathway.

Methods: 184 patients with newly diagnosed OPSCC treated with curative intent were consecutively enrolled.

Maximum Standardized Uptake Value (SUV) of Primary Tumor Predicts Occult Neck Metastasis in Oral Cancer.

The aim of this study was to investigate the predictability of occult lymph node metastasis using maximum standardized uptake value (SUV) in the primary tumor on pre-treatment 18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography FDG-PET in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) patients who were clinically node negative (cN0) before surgery. A retrospective analysis of all patients treated at the University Hospital Zurich from 2007 to 2016 for OSCC with available pre-therapeutic FDG-PET was performed. We assessed the correlation of SUV of the primary tumors with the presence of occult nodal disease in the neck dissection specimen (pN+).

Impact of human papillomavirus on outcome in patients with oropharyngeal cancer treated with primary surgery.

Background: Knowledge about prognostic factors in surgically treated patients with oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is limited. The purpose of this study was to identify influential factors on survival in a large cohort of patients with surgically treated oropharyngeal SCC.

Methods: Retrospective analysis of survival estimates in patients with surgically treated oropharyngeal SCC using tumoral positivity for human papillomavirus (HPV) and risk-of-death categories according to a study from 2010 as stratification factors.

Evaluation of type-specific antibodies to high risk-human papillomavirus (HPV) proteins in patients with oropharyngeal cancer.

Objectives: High risk human papillomavirus (HR-HPV) infection leads to a subgroup of oropharyngeal cancer (OPSCC) characterized by improved treatment response. However an universally accepted definition of an HR-HPV-attributable cancer is lacking.

Methods: Detailed, type-specific HPV antibody responses were analyzed by multiplex serology in HR-HPV-attributable OPSCC patients, defined by p16 overexpression and HR-HPV DNA detection by PCR amplification and sequencing.

Sentinel Node in Oral Cancer: The Nuclear Medicine Aspects. A Survey from the Sentinel European Node Trial.

Purpose: Nuclear imaging plays a crucial role in lymphatic mapping of oral cancer. This evaluation represents a subanalysis of the original multicenter SENT trial data set, involving 434 patients with T1-T2, N0, and M0 oral squamous cell carcinoma. The impact of acquisition techniques, tracer injection timing relative to surgery, and causes of false-negative rate were assessed.

Technique for reliable sentinel node biopsy in squamous cell carcinomas of the floor of mouth.

Background: Applicability of sentinel node biopsy (SNB) for tumors of the floor of mouth (FOM) is controversial.

Methods: Prospective evaluation of the accuracy of gamma-probe-guided superselective neck dissection of the preglandular triangle of level I for SNB in FOM squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) after preoperative lymphoscintigraphy and single photon emission CT (SPECT)/CT.

Results: In total, 22 sentinel lymph nodes were harvested in level I.

Endoscopic dilation of complete oesophageal obstructions with a combined antegrade-retrograde rendezvous technique.

Aim: To investigate the combined antegrade-retrograde endoscopic rendezvous technique for complete oesophageal obstruction and the swallowing outcome.

Methods: This single-centre case series includes consecutive patients who were unable to swallow due to complete oesophageal obstruction and underwent combined antegrade-retrograde endoscopic dilation (CARD) within the last 10 years. The patients' demographic characteristics, clinical parameters, endoscopic therapy, adverse events, and outcomes were obtained retrospectively.

Sentinel European Node Trial (SENT): 3-year results of sentinel node biopsy in oral cancer.

Purpose: Optimum management of the N0 neck is unresolved in oral cancer. Sentinel node biopsy (SNB) can reliably detect microscopic lymph node metastasis. The object of this study was to establish whether the technique was both reliable in staging the N0 neck and a safe oncological procedure in patients with early-stage oral squamous cell carcinoma.

Brush cytology for the detection of high-risk HPV infection in oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma.

Background: High-risk human papillomavirus (HR-HPV) infection is associated with improved prognosis and a better response to treatment in patients with oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC). Brush cytology is a noninvasive method with which to collect cells from the surface of mucosal lesions. The objective of the current study was to assess the performance of OPSCC brush cytology for the detection of HR-HPV.

Management of von hippel-lindau disease: an interdisciplinary review.

Von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) disease is an autosomal dominantly inherited tumour predisposition syndrome with an incidence of 1:36,000 newborns, the estimated prevalence in Europe is about 1-9/100,000. It is associated with an increased risk of developing various benign and malignant tumours, thus affecting multiple organs at different time points in the life of a patient. Disease severity and diversity as well as age at first symptoms vary considerably, and diagnostic delay due to failure of recognition is a relevant issue.

Impact of clinical risk scores and BRAF V600E mutation status on outcome in papillary thyroid cancer.

Background: To evaluate the relationship between the BRAF V600E mutation and clinicopathologic parameters and to assess the impact of the BRAF V600E mutation and established risk scores on survival in patients with papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC).

Methods: Retrospective analysis of a consecutive, single-institutional cohort of patients with PTC larger than 1 cm. Clinical risk scores according to the Metastases, Age, Completeness of Resection, Invasion, Size (MACIS), European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC), and tumor, node, metastases (TNM) scoring systems were determined.

Histopathological mapping of metastatic tumor cells in sentinel lymph nodes of oral and oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomas.

Background: Sentinel lymph node biopsy is a reliable technique for accurate determination of the cervical lymph node status in patients with early oral and oropharyngeal cancer but analyses on the distribution pattern of metastatic spread within sentinel lymph nodes are lacking.

Methods: The localizations of carcinoma deposits were analyzed with a virtual microscope by creating digital images from the microscopic glass slides.

Results: Metastatic deposits were not randomly distributed within sentinel lymph nodes but were predominant in the central planes closer to the lymphatic inlet.