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Exhaled breath analysis in the diagnosis of head and neck cancer
Author(s) -
Mäkitie Antti A.,
Almangush Alhadi,
Youssef Omar,
Metsälä Markus,
Silén Suvi,
Nixon Iain J.,
Haigentz Missak,
Rodrigo Juan P.,
Saba Nabil F.,
Vander Poorten Vincent,
Ferlito Alfio
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
head and neck
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.012
H-Index - 127
eISSN - 1097-0347
pISSN - 1043-3074
DOI - 10.1002/hed.26043
Subject(s) - medicine , head and neck cancer , cancer , stage (stratigraphy) , head and neck , incidence (geometry) , intensive care medicine , basal cell , oncology , surgery , paleontology , physics , optics , biology
Head and neck cancer (HNC) comprises a heterogeneous group of upper aerodigestive tract malignant neoplasms, the most frequent of which is squamous cell carcinoma. HNC forms the eighth most common cancer type and the incidence is increasing. However, survival has improved only moderately during the past decades. Currently, early diagnosis remains the mainstay for improving treatment outcomes in this patient population. Unfortunately, screening methods to allow early detection of HNC are not yet established. Therefore, many cases are still diagnosed at advanced stage, compromising outcomes. Exhaled breath analysis (EBA) is a diagnostic tool that has been recently introduced for many cancers. Breath analysis is non‐invasive, cost‐effective, time‐saving, and can potentially be applied for cancer screening. Here, we provide a summary of the accumulated evidence on the feasibility of EBA in the diagnosis of HNC.