Active clinical trials for "Head and Neck Neoplasms"

The purpose of the multi centre study is to evaluate an intervention, which means that patients undergoing radiotherapy for head and neck cancer will receive fixed dentures in accordance with the Public Health Care fee system with regard to well-being and oral health related quality of life. Hypotheses: the intervention will improve oral health related quality of life, general wellbeing, and nutrition in patients treated by radiotherapy, with or without combination of chemotherapy or surgery against head and neck cancer.

A phosphate supplement is part of the treatment of patients with the refeeding syndrome (RFS). It is not known, if the generalized edema also affects the intestine to decrease absorption. The aim was to investigate, if oral treatment is possible in mild to moderate RFS. In a randomized crossover design 12 hospitalized head-neck cancer patients ingested four oral solutions of phosphate in two-day periods. In a low-dose period the investigators compared five mmol phosphate from either skimmed milk or Di-sodiumphosphate-di-hydrate and potassium di-hydrogens-phosphate with black currant flavor (PBC), and in a high-dose period 20 mmol from either Addiphos® or the PBC-solution. P-phosphate was measured two and four hours after the ingestion, the urinary excretion after four hours. P-phosphate significantly increased after PBC in both the low- and high-dose and Addiphos®, but not after skimmed milk. The increase was larger after Addiphos® than the PBC-solution. There was no difference in the increase between the patients with low p-phosphate and those with normal values, and no correlation between baseline p-phosphate and percent increase. There was no group difference in the urinary excretion of phosphate. The investigators conclude that phosphate can be readily absorbed after oral administration, but skimmed milk can´t be recommend for this purpose.

Prospective open-label, non-randomized, monocentric, cohort study, to assess the prevalence and severity of sleep apnea syndrome in patients treated for cancer of the upper aerodigestive tract. The patient follows a usual course of care including, at the end of the treatment of his cancer of the upper aerodigestive tract, screening for obstructive sleep apnea syndrome at 3 months and 6 months (Epworth score and ventilatory polygraphy)

The purpose of this study is to determine the impact of preoperative nutritional supplements on head and neck surgery patients.

Cervical lymph node involvement, in head and cancer neck patients, is one of the most important prognostic factors. Currently patients undergo neck dissection removing some or all nodes and neck involvement is retrospectively determined. Sentinel lymph node (SLN) identification and biopsy has become clinical practise in other areas including breast, skin, and gastric cancer. The gold standard for detecting metastatic lymph nodes is pathological analysis, but the lack of an accurate or clinically accepted way to identify sentinel lymph nodes in the cervical region has motivated the usage of indocyanine green (ICG) and near-infrared fluorescence (NIR) imaging (Pinpoint, Novadaq, Waterloo). A prospective clinical trial using a commercially available NIR system and ICG injection around the tumour site will evaluate the ability to detect and biopsy sentinel lymph nodes in head and neck cancer patients.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate if the addition of valproic acid to standard platinum-based chemoradiation as definitive treatment of locally advanced Head and Neck squamous cell carcinoma can improve treatment outcomes, such as response rate.

Cone beam CT (computed tomography) is a developing technology which allows CT images to be obtained while a patient is on the radiation treatment table.(A CT scan uses x-rays to produce detailed pictures of structures in the body.) In this study, cone beam CT scans will be obtained before individual radiation treatment sessions for head and neck cancer. The information gathered from these scans will be used by the researchers to look at patient movement as well as changes in the amount of normal and tumor tissue throughout the course of radiation therapy. The researchers will use this information to create hypothetical radiation treatment plans, which will be used as the basis for future research. The cone beam CT scan data will not be used to alter the actual radiation treatment of any of the patients enrolled on the study. In addition, tests of salivary output and swallowing and questionnaires about quality of life will be made to assess how the doses of radiation affect them.

The purpose of this study is to determine 1-year survival of previously irradiated Head and Neck cancer (HNC) patients with loco-regional recurrent disease treated with induction chemotherapy with pemetrexed and gemcitabine followed concomitant pemetrexed, carboplatin and daily radiotherapy.

Vasopressors may be needed after head and neck microvascular reconstructions to maintain sufficient mean arterial pressure. This is crucial for the flap survival. The study hypothesis is that norepinephrine and dopamine used as vasopressors do not affect flap tissue oxygen level and microdialysate metabolites.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a diagnostic study that makes pictures of organs of the body using magnetic field and radio frequency pulses that can not be felt. Dynamic contrast enhanced-magnetic resonance imaging (DCE-MRI) uses faster imaging and contrast material (a substance used to make specific organs, blood vessels, or tumors easier to see) that is given by vein. Diffusion weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DW-MRI) allows to measure the motion of water around the cells in the tumor. Proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) obtains chemical information from the tumor. During MRS, signals are detected from the chemicals (spectroscopy) naturally present in your tumor using radio waves. DCE-MRI, DW-MRI and MRS give extra information which is not available with the regular MRI. The regular MRI only shows pictures of the tumor while the DCE-MRI also gives information about the blood vessels of the tumor. DW-MRI provides information related to the state of the tumor tissue with regards to the quality or condition of cells present in it and MRS gives information about the chemical makeup of the tumor. The purpose of this study is to see whether DCE-MRI, DW-MRI and MRS done before treatment can predict which patients will do well with either surgery or chemo-radiation therapy. This study will also see if DCE-MRI, DW-MRI and MRS done early in treatment can tell if the therapy is working.