Comparison Between PET-CT-Guided Neck Dissection and Elective Neck Dissection in cT1-2N0 Tongue Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Quarter Century Positron Emission Tomography/Computed Tomography Transformation of Oncology: Head and Neck Cancer

During the last 2 decades, f-18 fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography (18F FDG PET/CT) has transformed the clinical head and neck cancer imaging for patient management and predicting survival outcomes. It is now widely used for staging, radiotherapy planning, posttherapy assessment, and for detecting recurrence in head and neck cancers and is widely included in NCCN and other evidence based clinical practice guidelines. Future Directions would include evaluating the potential value of FAPI PET/CT for head and neck cancers, opportunity to use volumetric and tumor heterogeneity parameters and deploying AI in diagnostic and therapeutic assessments.

18F-FDG PET/CT Staging of Head and Neck Cancer: Interobserver Agreement and Accuracy-Results from Multicenter ACRIN 6685 Clinical Trial

To our knowledge, no prior multicenter clinical trial has reported interobserver agreement of 18F-FDG PET/CT scans for staging of clinical N0 neck in head and neck cancer. Methods: A total of 287 participants were recruited. For visual analysis, positive nodal uptake of 18F-FDG was defined as uptake visually greater than activity seen in the blood pool. Results: The negative predictive value of the 18F-FDG PET/CT for N0 clinical neck was 86% or above for visual assessment (95% CI, 86%-88%) for the 2 central readers and above 90% (95% CI, 90%-95%) for SUVmax for central reads and site reads dichotomized at the optimal cutoff value of 1.8 and the prespecified cutoff value of 3.5, respectively. The κ coefficients between the 2 expert readers and between central reads and site reads varied between 0.53 and 0.78. Conclusion: The NPV of the 18F-FDG PET/CT for N0 clinical neck was 86% or above for visual assessment and above 90% for SUVmax cut points of 1.8 and 3.5 with moderate to substantial agreements.

A Rational Approach to Unilateral Neck RT for Head and Neck Cancers in the Era of Immunotherapy

Radiotherapy plays an important role in the definitive and adjuvant treatment of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). However, standard courses of radiation therapy may contribute to the depletion of circulating lymphocytes and potentially attenuate optimal tumor antigen presentation that may be detrimental to the efficacy of novel immunotherapeutic agents. This review explores the advantages of restricting radiation to the primary tumor/tumor bed and ipsilateral elective neck as it pertains to the evolving field of immunotherapy.