Case report
A new complementary procedure for patients affected by head and neck cancer: Chemo-predictive assay

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijscr.2016.07.013Get rights and content
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Highlights

  • Cancer stem cells (CSCs) resist chemotherapy, thereby causing relapse of the disease.

  • A new chemotherapy drug response assay (ChemoID), which measures the sensitivity of CSCs to a variety of chemotherapy agents has been developed.

  • The ChemoID assay may assist an oncologist in making treatment decisions.

  • The ChemoID procedure may lower treatment costs by eliminating ineffective chemotherapies and unnecessary toxicity.

Abstract

Introduction

Administration of ineffective anticancer therapy is associated with unnecessary toxicity and development of resistant clones. Cancer stem cells (CSCs) resist chemotherapy, thereby causing relapse of the disease. Thus, development of a test that identifies the most effective chemotherapy management offers great promise for individualized anticancer treatments. We have developed an ex vivo chemotherapy drug response assay (ChemoID®), which measures the sensitivity of CSCs as well as the bulk of tumor cells to a variety of chemotherapy agents to assist an oncologist in making treatment decisions.

Methods

Three patients affected by oral cancer were referred.

Results

Biopsy showed a well-differentiated squamous cell carcinoma (G1) in case 1, a G2 adenocarcinoma in case 2 and a G3 squamous cell carcinoma in case 3. In all of the three cases, after clinical inspection and suspicion of a diagnosis of cancer, a double biopsy was performed. One specimen was sent to the ChemoID laboratory for chemosensitivity assay and the other for histological analysis. Chemotherapy dose response curves were generated, and grouped in 3 categories: 1. No response (less than 30% cell kill), Intermediate (30–60% cell kill), and 3. Sensitive (60% cell kill or above).

Conclusions

This procedure may be useful in helping physicians choose an effective chemotherapy regimen for head and neck cancer patients and lower treatment costs by eliminating ineffective chemotherapies and unnecessary toxicity particularly in elderly patients.

Keywords

Drug response assay
Chemosensitivity assay
ChemoID assay
Cancer stem cells
Oral cancer

Cited by (0)

1

Professor of Maxillofacial Surgery at University of Salerno, Italy.

2

Specialist in Oral Surgery at University of Naples, Italy.

3

Professor of Dentistry at University of Salerno, Italy.

4

Cancer Biologist, McKown Translational Genomic Research Institute, Marshall University, Huntington, WV 25701, USA.

5

Medical Technologist, Cabell Huntington Hospital, Huntington, WV, USA.

6

Professor and Chair Department of Anatomy and Pathology, Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine, Marshall University, Cabell Huntington Hospital, Huntington, WV, USA.

7

National Center for Natural Products Research and Department of BioMolecular Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Mississippi, Oxford, MS, USA.

8

Professor Department of Biology, Marshall University, Huntington, WV, USA.

9

Professor Department of BioMolecular Sciences, Research Professor National Center for Natural Products Research, University of Mississippi, Oxford, MS, USA and Professor Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson Cancer Center, Jackson, MS, USA.