Squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck - screening in patients who misuse alcohol and tobacco in Switzerland: a prospective pilot study

Utility of laryngoscopy in liver failure

PURPOSE

To determine the utility of laryngoscopy in the evaluation of liver transplant patients.

METHODS

This study is a single center retrospective cohort review of patients with a diagnosis of liver failure who underwent laryngoscopy or stroboscopy exam as part of a pre-transplant evaluation from 1/1/2010 to 12/31/2022. Patients were identified using ICD 9 and 10 codes for liver failure and CPT codes for flexible laryngoscopy and stroboscopy. Only patients who underwent preoperative liver transplant evaluation were included. Demographic data was collected. Cohort analysis between patients who did or did not undergo further diagnostic intervention was undertaken.

RESULTS

1824 patients were identified. 243 of these patients underwent pre-transplant laryngoscopy or stroboscopy. 26 of the 243 (10.7 %) patients had further diagnostic work up for findings during laryngoscopy, stroboscopy, or head and neck examination. There was one patient who was found to have head and neck cancer and was excluded from the transplant list until this was treated.

CONCLUSIONS

Otolaryngologic evaluation of liver transplant patients may be beneficial to identify head and neck pathology.

LINC00941 promoted in vitro progression and glycolysis of laryngocarcinoma by upregulating PKM via activating the PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway

Background

LINC00941 has been proved to be related to various tumors, but its relationship with laryngocarcinoma remains vague.

Methods

LINC00941 expression in laryngocarcinoma tumor and laryngocarcinoma cells was determined by real time‐quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT‐qPCR). Besides, the five‐year survival of laryngocarcinoma patients with different LINC00941 expression was analyzed with Kaplan–Meier survival analysis, and the clinical characteristics of laryngocarcinoma patients were also recorded. After transfection, cell viability, cell proliferation, apoptosis, cell cycle, migration, and invasion were detected by cell counting kit‐8 (CCK‐8), colony formation, flow cytometry, cell scratch, and Transwell assays, respectively. Glycolysis was assessed by the colorimetric method. Expressions of proliferation‐associated proteins, migration‐associated proteins, glycolysis‐associated proteins, and phosphatidylinositol 3‐kinase (PI3K)/AKT/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signal pathway‐associated proteins were detected by Western blot.

Results

In laryngocarcinoma tumor tissues and cells, LINC00941 was highly expressed. High expression of LINC00941 decreased the 5‐year survival of laryngocarcinoma patients, and it was positively related to lymph node metastasis and clinical stages. LINC00941 overexpression decreased apoptosis but promoted cell viability, proliferation, cell‐cycle progression, migration, and invasion, and glucose consumption and lactate production in laryngocarcinoma cells. Moreover, LINC00941 overexpression elevated expressions of Ki‐67, PCNA, MMP2, N‐Cadherin, HK2, PFKFB4, and PKM, activated the PI3K/AKT/mTOR signal pathway but reduced E‐Cadherin expression, while LINC00941 silencing had the opposite effects. PKM overexpression reversed the effects of LINC00941 silencing on cellular and glycolytic phenotypes.

Conclusion

LINC00941 promoted in vitro progression and glycolysis of laryngocarcinoma cells by upregulating PKM via activating the PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway.

Individual head and neck screening: Initiating a dialogue about best approach

PURPOSE

We aim to investigate the true benefits of free individual HNC screening in a high-risk urban population as well as the associated risks.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This is a retrospective descriptive study. Free HNC screening was performed from 2014 to 2019. Participants were issued a questionnaire at the time of screening. After exemption by the Institutional Review Board, completed screening questionnaires were entered into a database and descriptive statistics were generated. The primary outcome measure for this study was the detection rate for HNC. We hypothesized that screening would be low yield based on previous studies (Gogarty et al., 2016).

RESULTS

This was a volunteer sample with a total of 410 participants, and the highest yield screening year was 2019 (n = 187). For all years, the cancer detection rate was 0%. In 2019, 134 (77.9%) of participants did not recognize the early symptoms of HNC, and 120 (73.2%) reported the screening program increased their awareness of the disease. 13 (7.6%) reported HPV vaccination while 126 (71.2%) were unaware that HPV has been linked with head and neck cancer.

CONCLUSIONS

HNC screening is an excellent opportunity for education regarding HNC risk factors. However, it is not a cost-effective use of physician time, does not increase detection rates even in high-risk segments of the general population, and is not completely without risk in the context of COVID-19. Perhaps the focus of HNC screening should shift from individualized screening to education and health promotion.

Trend of hospitalized cases of oral cancer in Brazil and its relationship with oral health coverage in public health system between 2009 and 2017

Background

This study aimed to analyze the trend in the number of hospitalized cases of oral cancer in Brazil, according to the coverage of oral health services in public health system, and also investigate the influence of healthcare and clinical characteristics on the severity of oral cancer cases.

Material and Methods

This retrospective study considered the period between 2009 and 2017. Data from the Hospital Registry of Cancer from the National Cancer Institute were used, considering the primary locations C00 to C06. Detailed information including sex, age, alcohol and tobacco use, year of first consultation, and the clinical stage of the cases were also collected. The frequency of hospitalized cases was correlated with the coverage of Primary Care Oral Health Teams (ESB) and the number of Dental Specialty Centers (CEO). It was also estimated the chance of advanced oral cancer cases, according to healthcare and clinical characteristics. Data were analyzed using Tweedie's multiple regression and multiple binary logistic regression (α<0.05).

Results

There was an increasing trend in the number of hospitalized cases of oral cancer in Brazil between 2009 and 2017 (B=0.043, p<0.001, PR=1.044). The increase in ESB coverage was associated with small increase in the number of hospitalized cases of oral cancer (B=0.001, p=0.003, PR=1.001). The increase in the number of CEO was associated with decrease in the number of hospitalized cases of oral cancer (B=-0.085, p<0.001, PR =0.918). The increase of ESB (OR=0.998) and CEO (OR=0.974) contributed for reducing the number of stage IV cases, whilst the history of alcohol and tobacco use (OR=1.574) was associated with an increase in the number of stage IV cases.

Conclusions

Although an increasing trend was detected, the expansion of the public health system reduced the number of hospitalized cases and the frequency of advanced oral cancer cases in Brazil.

Key words:Mouth neoplasms, squamous cell carcinoma, oral diagnosis.