Open AccessChemotherapy advances in locally advanced head and neck cancer
Author(s) -
Peter Georges,
Kumar Rajagopalan,
Chady Abboud Leon,
Priya Singh,
Nadir Ahmad,
Kamyar Nader,
Gregory J. Kubicek
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
world journal of clinical oncology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2218-4333
DOI - 10.5306/wjco.v5.i5.966
Subject(s) - medicine , chemotherapy , head and neck squamous cell carcinoma , radiation therapy , head and neck cancer , oncology , cisplatin , head and neck , induction chemotherapy , cancer , surgery
The management of locally advanced unresectable head and neck squamous cell cancer (HNSCC) continues to improve. One of the major advances in the treatment of HNSCC was the addition of chemotherapy to radiation in the treatment of non-surgical patients. The majority of the data regarding chemotherapy in HNSCC involve cisplatin chemotherapy with concurrent radiation. However, several new approaches have included targeted therapy against epidermal growth factor receptor and several recent studies have explored the role of induction chemotherapy in the treatment of HNSCC. The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of the role of chemotherapy in the treatment of locally advanced HNSCC.