Head & Neck Cancers | Specialty

The OncLive Head and Neck Cancer condition center page is a comprehensive resource for clinical news and expert insights on treatment for patients with head and neck cancer. This page features news articles, interviews in written and video format, and podcasts that focus on unmet needs, treatment advances, and ongoing research within head and neck cancer.

Patients With Low-Risk Thyroid Microcarcinoma Benefit More With Active Surveillance

January 27th 2016

Results of a recent study show that patients with low-risk thyroid-related microcarcinoma who choose to undergo immediate surgery are at higher risk for adverse events and unnecessary risk compared with those who decide on active surveillance.

Promising Immuno-Oncology Approaches in the Management of Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Head and Neck

January 27th 2016

Substantial evidence exists that a subset of squamous cell cancers of the head and neck display phenotypic changes that predict activity for immune checkpoint inhibitors.

Dr. Mukherjee on Radioactive Iodine Treatment of Thyroid Cancer and Risk of MDS

January 20th 2016

Sudipto Mukherjee, MD, associate staff, Department of Hematology and Oncology, Cleveland Clinic, discusses a study examining the association between radioactive iodine treatment of thyroid cancer and the risk for developing myelodysplastic syndromes.

Dr. Burtness on Emerging Immunotherapies in Head and Neck Cancer

January 12th 2016

Barbara A. Burtness, MD, professor of Medicine (Medical Oncology), clinical research program leader, Head and Neck Cancers Program, co-director, Developmental Therapeutics Research Program, Yale Cancer Center, discusses emerging immunotherapies and ongoing clinical trials in head and neck cancer.

Dr. Brose on Unique Elements of the Lenvatinib Trial

November 12th 2015

Marcia Brose, MD, PhD, associate professor of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, discusses the lenvatinib trial.

Dr. Yael Cohen on Anti-Angiogenic Agent VB-111

October 29th 2015

Yael Cohen, MD, vice president of Clinical Development at VBL Therapeutics Pharmaceuticals, discusses VB-111, a highly targeted anti-angiogenic agent that is being investigated in several tumor types.

John Copland on Patient-Derived Xenografts in Anaplastic Thyroid Cancer

October 27th 2015

John Copland, PhD, faculty member in the department of cancer biology, Mayo Clinic, explains his research on patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models in anaplastic thyroid cancer.

Mayo Study Characterizes Pembrolizumab-Induced Thyroiditis

October 23rd 2015

Abnormal thyroid function tests were reported in up to 15% of patients treated with the PD-1 inhibitor pembrolizumab.

Nodule Size Should Not Determine Biopsy Decision in Thyroid Cancer

October 23rd 2015

The recent American Thyroid Association guidelines to abstain from cytological evaluation by biopsy for patients with thyroid cancer on the basis of having thyroid nodules â‰¤1 cm is not advisable.

Pazopanib's Activity in Thyroid Cancer Not Predicted by Thyroglobulin

October 22nd 2015

Pazopanib demonstrated significant clinical activity for patients with RAI-refractory differentiated thyroid cancer; however, a predictive biomarker for the therapy could not be uncovered.

Tumor Profiling Identifies Potential Biomarkers for Vandetanib in MTC

October 22nd 2015

Researchers have identified molecular markers in medullary thyroid cancer that were associated with response to vandetanib and the development of metastases.

Dr. Stephen Huang on Challenges in Pediatric Thyroid Cancer

October 22nd 2015

Stephen Huang, MD, Associate Professor of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, discusses the challenges of pediatric thyroid cancer.

Dr. Brose on Lenvatinib in Differentiated Thyroid Cancer

October 22nd 2015

Marcia Brose, MD, PhD, associate professor of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, discusses survival benefit and possible combination strategies with the lenvatinib in patients with radioactive iodine refractory differentiated thyroid cancer.

Dr. Valderrabano on Understanding Cancer Risk in Indeterminate Thyroid Nodules

October 21st 2015

Pablo Valderrabano, MD, Clinical Research Fellow at Moffitt Cancer Center, discusses molecular markers in thyroid nodules and their connection to cancer incidence.

Second-Line Cabozantinib Effective in RAI-Refractory DTC

October 21st 2015

The oral multikinase inhibitor cabozantinib showed promise as a second- or third-line therapy in patients with advanced radioactive iodine-refractory differentiated thyroid cancer.

Lenvatinib PFS Benefit in DTC Maintained Across Metastasis Sites

October 21st 2015

The progression-free survival benefit with lenvatinib in radioactive iodine-refractory differentiated thyroid cancer was observed across common sites of metastasis.

Survey Reveals Potential Overuse of Thyroid Nodule Biopsy

October 21st 2015

A large survey of endocrinologists found wide variation in management strategies for thyroid nodules that were frequently misaligned with current guidelines, particularly for biopsies by fine-needle aspiration.

Dr. Umamaheswar Duvvuri on Impact of Multiple Genetic Mutations in Advanced Thyroid Cancer

October 20th 2015

Umamaheswar Duvvuri, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor of Otolaryngology (ENT) at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, talks about potential genetic signatures for locally advanced, well differentiated thyroid cancers.

Dr. Manisha Shah on Cabozantinib Impact on Tumor Shrinkage in Differentiated Thyroid Cancer

October 20th 2015

Manisha Shah, MD, Professor of Oncology at Ohio State University Medical Center, College of Medicine discusses cabozantinib in patients with radioiodine- refractory differentiated thyroid cancer.

Parotid Node Metastases in Locally Advanced Nasopharyngeal and Oropharyngeal Cancer: Implications for Radiotherapy Target Volume Delineation

October 5th 2015

The ipsilateral parotidean nodes may be at risk of metastatic involvement when bulky ipsilateral level II metastases and multilevel nodal disease are co-existent, possibly due to retrograde lymphatic drainage.