Tumor-Killing Technology in Head and Neck Cancer

The era of treating every patient with head and neck cancer with the same regimen—a combination of aggressive surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy—is coming to a close. Advances in care in the past decade, most notably in the past few years, have opened the doors to new ways of thinking that are extending survival and improving quality of life for patients.

More-targeted approaches are being developed based on findings from clinical trials examining tumor-killing drugs previously used primarily for other types of cancer, immunotherapy, blood-based biomarkers for early detection and treatment prediction, and radiation dose de-escalation particularly for specific human papilloma virus (HPV)–positive patients. Proton therapy, in certain cases, allows us to better spare normal tissues in patients receiving radiotherapy. Additionally, the use of single-port, robot-assisted systems for head and neck surgeries, as well as other new technologies, are providing more options for patients.

Read more here https://www.onclive.com/view/tumor-killing-technology-in-head-and-neck-cancer