View clinical trials related to Oropharynx Cancer.
Filter by:Previous studies of this type of head and necl cancer have shown high rates of cancer control but result in many short and long term side effects when treated with high dose radiation and chemotherapy. Recently, investigators have noticed similar high rates of cancer control in small numbers of patients who receive less intensive treatments using lower doses of radiation, smaller radiation fields with chemotherapy. It is expected that the side effects of treatment with lower doses of radiation would be less. For this reason this study is looking at a different regimen of reducing the intensity of the treatment. The purpose of this study is to compare any good and bad effects of using lower dose smaller fields radiation therapy and chemotherapy with published outcomes. This study will allow the researchers to know whether these different approaches are better, the same, or worse than the usual approach. To be better, the study approach should result in the same survival rate of the usual approach (about 85 out of 100 patients alive and free of cancer at 2 years) but with less long-term side effects.
Radiation-induced xerostomia (dry mouth) is one of the most common and severe toxicities experienced by patients undergoing radiation treatment for head and neck cancer. Radiation-induced dry mouth is a frequently experienced symptom and persists after treatment, potentially indefinitely. Current practice does not specifically attempt to spare the parotid ducts, where stem/progenitor cells are believed to preferentially reside, and considers the entire salivary gland to have equal function. New radiation therapy planning and conducting strategies are needed to reduce this toxicity and maximize patient quality of life post-treatment. This randomized Phase II study explores the contribution of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) guided salivary gland duct definition to decrease patient-reported xerostomia in patients with oropharynx cancer receiving radiation therapy. The severity of xerostomia will be measured by patient-reported (PRO) symptoms, saliva secretion, saliva pH, and buffering.
This study seeks to study the population of HPV-related oropharynx cancer patients that appear to be at highest risk for treatment failure with loco-regional failure and distant metastases including cT4 or cN3. The study team aims to determine if it is feasible to use multi-modality imaging (both DCE MRI and FDG-PET) to optimize the radiation boost in high risk p16+ OPSCC with similar or decreased toxicity compared to historic standard therapy.
In current diagnostic work-up of patients with a cancer of unknown primary (CUP), approximately 50% of the primary tumor lesions remains undetected. Identification of the primary tumor site results in minimizing the potential morbidity from treatment by reducing morbidity by omitting the need for a mucosectomy of the bilateral base of tongue and tonsils, reducing the radiation field and better oncologic outcome than those with unidentified primary tumor. Clearly, new endoscopic 'real-time' imaging techniques are needed to visualize mucosal changes associated with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma and increase detection rate of the primary tumor. Targeted fluorescence endoscopy enables the visualization of targeted tumor-specific biomarkers by using fluorescence, thereby enhancing the contrast between normal mucosa and tumor tissue. This could improve the detection of the primary tumor in cases where the primary tumor is not detected with white light endoscopy.
Patients with human papillomavirus (HPV)-related oropharyngeal cancer generally have favorable outcomes and how well they do depends on the specific details about the patient and their cancer. How well they do isn't as related to the kinds of treatment they get. However, there are significant side effects for the various types of treatments they may get. Because these patients generally have favorable outcomes no matter the kind of treatment, reducing side effects should be a priority when choosing their treatment. The goal of this clinical research study is to evaluate whether a new blood test called a Circulating Tumor DNA test (ctDNA test) can decrease the number of people that require radiation after surgery. This blood test is often elevated in people when they are diagnosed with head and neck cancer. There are studies that show that cancer most often returns when this blood test is positive after treatment. This study will test patients' blood before and after surgery. In cases where the test is negative after surgery, people on the study will not receive radiation unless they are considered high risk based on surgery findings. The hope is that radiation and its potential side effects can be limited to only people that need the treatment.
This is a pilot prospective observational cohort study, comprising patients with head and neck cancer (HNSCC) treated with standard of care definitive (chemo)radiation either with photons or protons. Patients will be assigned for protons or photons based on the guidelines of the National Indication Protocol for Proton therapy of the Netherlands. Immunological function will be evaluated by the collection of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). Blood samples will be collected at baseline, during (chemo)radiation (end of week 3 and/or before week 4 of treatment) and after completion of (chemo)radiation (week 9, week 12, week 20, week 34 and week 60, respectively 1 week, 5 weeks, 3 months, 6 months and 12 months after completion of (chemo)radiation). To quantify immunological function, PBMCs collected during (chemo)radiation and after (chemo)radiation will be compared with that before (chemo)radiation (week 0), using IFN-γ-ELISPOT to screen for the presence of antigen-specific T-cell responses. Furthermore, flow cytometry panels will be used to determine global changes in immune cell proficiency. Histological evaluation will take place at baseline and week 3 to examine changes in immune infiltration within tumour tissue during proton versus photon (chemo)radiation. This biopsy part of the study is optional for the patient. Archival tissue from the biopsy that was taken at diagnosis will be used for the baseline assessments. Biopsy at week 3 week will be taken for all patients who agree to participate in this optional part of the study.
The goal of this observational longitudinal study is to learn about circulating tumor Human Papilloma Virus-DNA (ctHPV-DNA) as a biomarker for HPV positive oropharyngeal cancer and cancer of unknown primary of the head and neck. The main questions it aims to answer are: - Can ctHPV-DNA be used for treatment evaluation in HPV positive oropharyngeal cancer and cancer of unknown primary of the head and neck? - Can circulating HPV-DNA be used as a biomarker for recurrent disease during surveillance? Participants will be asked to leave plasma samples at diagnose, at the end of treatment and at every clinical follow-up. The patients are there own controls.
The purpose of this research is to determine whether it is feasible to treat patients with Human Papilloma Virus positive (HPV-positive) oropharyngeal tumors on a specialized treatment machine (MRIdian linear accelerator [Linac]), which utilizes magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for radiation planning and delivery.
This is a prospective, phase II, stratified single arm investigation for favorable prognosis in p16+ oropharynx cancer patients with either node negative or malignant neck adenopathy with lymphoscintigraphy mapping confined to the ipsilateral neck.
The purpose of the study is to design a physical activity and dietary intervention for head and neck cancer patients.