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Background Mesenchymal stromal/stem cells (MSCs) have been suggested for salivary gland (SG) restoration following radio-induced salivary gland damage. This study aimed to determine the safety and effectiveness of MSC therapy on radio-induced SG damage and hypofunction in preclinical in vivo studies. Methods PubMed and EMBASE were systematically searched for preclinical in vivo interventional studies evaluating efficacy and safety of MSC treatment following radio-induced salivary gland damage published before 10th of January 2022. The primary endpoint was salivary flow rate (SFR) evaluated in a meta-analysis. The study protocol was published and registered on PROSPERO (www.crd.ac.uk/prospero), registration number CRD42021227336. Results A total of 16 preclinical in vivo studies were included for qualitative analysis (858 experimental animals) and 13 in the meta-analysis (404 experimental animals). MSCs originated from bone marrow (four studies), adipose tissue (10 studies) and salivary gland tissue (two studies) and were administered intravenously (three studies), intra-glandularly (11 studies) or subcutaneously (one study). No serious adverse events were reported. The overall effect on SFR was significantly increased with a standardized mean difference (SMD) of 6.99 (95% CI: 2.55–11.42). Studies reported improvements in acinar tissue, vascular areas and paracrine factors. Conclusion In conclusion, this systematic review and meta-analysis showed a significant effect of MSC therapy for restoring SG functioning and regenerating SG tissue following radiotherapy in preclinical in vivo studies without serious adverse events. MSC therapy holds significant therapeutic potential in the treatment of radio-induced xerostomia, but comprehensive, randomized, clinical trials in humans are required to ascertain their efficacy in a clinical setting., BACKGROUND: Mesenchymal stromal/stem cells (MSCs) have been suggested for salivary gland (SG) restoration following radio-induced salivary gland damage. This study aimed to determine the safety and effectiveness of MSC therapy on radio-induced SG damage and hypofunction in preclinical in vivo studies.METHODS: PubMed and EMBASE were systematically searched for preclinical in vivo interventional studies evaluating efficacy and safety of MSC treatment following radio-induced salivary gland damage published before 10th of January 2022. The primary endpoint was salivary flow rate (SFR) evaluated in a meta-analysis. The study protocol was published and registered on PROSPERO ( www.crd.ac.uk/prospero ), registration number CRD42021227336.RESULTS: A total of 16 preclinical in vivo studies were included for qualitative analysis (858 experimental animals) and 13 in the meta-analysis (404 experimental animals). MSCs originated from bone marrow (four studies), adipose tissue (10 studies) and salivary gland tissue (two studies) and were administered intravenously (three studies), intra-glandularly (11 studies) or subcutaneously (one study). No serious adverse events were reported. The overall effect on SFR was significantly increased with a standardized mean difference (SMD) of 6.99 (95% CI: 2.55-11.42). Studies reported improvements in acinar tissue, vascular areas and paracrine factors.CONCLUSION: In conclusion, this systematic review and meta-analysis showed a significant effect of MSC therapy for restoring SG functioning and regenerating SG tissue following radiotherapy in preclinical in vivo studies without serious adverse events. MSC therapy holds significant therapeutic potential in the treatment of radio-induced xerostomia, but comprehensive, randomized, clinical trials in humans are required to ascertain their efficacy in a clinical setting.

Background: p16INK4a (p16) immunohistochemistry is the most widely used biomarker assay for inferring HPV causation in oropharyngeal cancer in clinical and trial settings. However, discordance exists between p16 and HPV DNA or RNA status in some patients with oropharyngeal cancer. We aimed to clearly quantify the extent of discordance, and its prognostic implications. Methods: In this multicentre, multinational individual patient data analysis, we did a literature search in PubMed and Cochrane database for systematic reviews and original studies published in English between Jan 1, 1970, and Sept 30, 2022. We included retrospective series and prospective cohorts of consecutively recruited patients previously analysed in individual studies with minimum cohort size of 100 patients with primary squamous cell carcinoma of the oropharynx. Patient inclusion criteria were diagnosis with a primary squamous cell carcinoma of oropharyngeal cancer; data on p16 immunohistochemistry and on HPV testing; information on age, sex, tobacco, and alcohol use; staging by TNM 7th edition; information on treatments received; and data on clinical outcomes and follow-up (date of last follow-up if alive, date of recurrence or metastasis, and date and cause of death). There were no limits on age or performance status. The primary outcomes were the proportion of patients of the overall cohort who showed the different p16 and HPV result combinations, as well as 5-year overall survival and 5-year disease-free survival. Patients with recurrent or metastatic disease or who were treated palliatively were excluded from overall survival and disease-free survival analyses. Multivariable analysis models were used to calculate adjusted hazard ratios (aHR) for different p16 and HPV testing methods for overall survival, adjusted for prespecified confounding factors. Findings: Our search returned 13 eligible studies that provided individual data for 13 cohorts of patients with oropharyngeal ca

Second primary cancer (SPC) is the second most common cause of death among patients diagnosed with head and neck cancer. This study examined the risk of SPC following oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) and the impact of human papillomavirus (HPV) on survival following SPC. The study was a population-based, retrospective study including all patients diagnosed with OPSCC in eastern Denmark from 2000–2020 who received curative intended treatment. The incidence rate ratio (IRR), age-adjusted incidence rates (AAIR), and hazard ratios (HR) were calculated. A total of 2584 patients with primary OPSCC were included (median follow-up time: 3.1 years), with 317 patients (12.3%) diagnosed with SPC. The risk of SPC was approximately five times the occurrence of cancer in the general population (IRR: 4.96). The median time to SPC after a primary OPSCC was 2.0 years (interquartile range (IQR) = 0.6–4.2 years). HPV-positive (HPV+) patients had a significantly longer median time to SPC, and a significant better survival compared to HPV-negative (HPV-) patients. SPC was most frequently found in lungs, head, and neck (LHN) for HPV- OPSCC patients and lungs followed by gender-specific (prostate, ovaries, or endometrium) for HPV+ OPSCC. There was a significant difference between the two groups when distributed between “within” or “outside” LHN. Patients with SPC outside LHN had a significant better overall survival. This knowledge should be considered during post-treatment surveillance and might guide targeted imaging.

Background: p16INK4a (p16) immunohistochemistry is the most widely used biomarker assay for inferring HPV causation in oropharyngeal cancer in clinical and trial settings. However, discordance exists between p16 and HPV DNA or RNA status in some patients with oropharyngeal cancer. We aimed to clearly quantify the extent of discordance, and its prognostic implications. Methods: In this multicentre, multinational individual patient data analysis, we did a literature search in PubMed and Cochrane database for systematic reviews and original studies published in English between Jan 1, 1970, and Sept 30, 2022. We included retrospective series and prospective cohorts of consecutively recruited patients previously analysed in individual studies with minimum cohort size of 100 patients with primary squamous cell carcinoma of the oropharynx. Patient inclusion criteria were diagnosis with a primary squamous cell carcinoma of oropharyngeal cancer; data on p16 immunohistochemistry and on HPV testing; information on age, sex, tobacco, and alcohol use; staging by TNM 7th edition; information on treatments received; and data on clinical outcomes and follow-up (date of last follow-up if alive, date of recurrence or metastasis, and date and cause of death). There were no limits on age or performance status. The primary outcomes were the proportion of patients of the overall cohort who showed the different p16 and HPV result combinations, as well as 5-year overall survival and 5-year disease-free survival. Patients with recurrent or metastatic disease or who were treated palliatively were excluded from overall survival and disease-free survival analyses. Multivariable analysis models were used to calculate adjusted hazard ratios (aHR) for different p16 and HPV testing methods for overall survival, adjusted for prespecified confounding factors. Findings: Our search returned 13 eligible studies that provided individual data for 13 cohorts of patients with oropharyngeal cancer from the

Objectives: To investigate thresholds for lymph node yield (LNY), lymph node density (LND), and pN in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma in relation to previous findings in the literature. Study Design: Retrospective register-based study. Setting: Copenhagen Oral Cavity Squamous Cell Carcinoma database. Methods: Appropriate thresholds for LNY, LND, and pN were determined by areas under the curve and subsequently subjected to multivariate analysis. Five-year overall survival and 3-year recurrence-free survival were determined by Kaplan-Meier survival curves. Results: In total, 413 patients diagnosed with oral squamous cell carcinoma were included. In the pN0 cohort, no superior/prognostic LNY cutoff values were detected. In the pN+ cohort, areas under the curve determined thresholds of LNY, LND, and pN to be 21 nodes, 5%, and 3 metastases, respectively. The 5-year overall survival was 52% for patients with LNY ≥21 vs 38% for patients with LNY <21 (hazard ratio [HR], 1.49; 95% CI, 1.05-2.11; P <.05), 60% for patients with LND ≤5% vs 38% for patients with LND >6% (HR, 1.63; 95% CI, 1.03-2.57; P <.05), and 43% for patients with pN <3 vs 26% for patients with pN ≥3 (HR, 1.40; 95% CI, 1.04-2.15; P <.05). Conclusions: Increased nodal yield, decreased LND, and decreasing number of pN were associated with significantly improved survival outcomes. LNY might serve as a prognosticator of survival as well as a surgical quality indicator. LND may have implications as a tool in cancer staging and treatment planning.

Background A high number of patients seek health information online, and large language models may produce a rising amount of it. Aim This study evaluates the performance regarding health information provided by ChatGPT, a large language model developed by OpenAI, focusing on its utility as a source for otolaryngology-related patient information. Material and Method A variety of doctors from a tertiary otorhinolaryngology department used a Likert scale to assess the chatbot's responses in terms of accuracy, relevance, and depth. The responses were also evaluated by ChatGPT. Results The composite mean of the three categories was 3.41, with the highest performance noted in the relevance category (mean=3.71) when evaluated by the respondents. The accuracy and depth categories yielded mean scores of 3.51 and 3.00, respectively. All the categories were rated as 5 when evaluated by ChatGPT. Conclusion and significance Despite its potential in providing relevant and accurate medical information, the chatbot's responses lacked depth and were found to potentially perpetuate biases due to its training on publicly available text. In conclusion, while large language models show promise in healthcare, further refinement is necessary to enhance response depth and mitigate potential biases.