Preliminary insights into the impact of primary radiochemotherapy on the salivary microbiome in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

Squamous cell carcinoma is the most common type of throat cancer. Treatment options comprise surgery, radiotherapy, and/or chemo(immuno)therapy. The salivary microbiome is shaped by the disease, and likely by the treatment, resulting in side effects caused by chemoradiation that severely impair patients' well-being. High-throughput amplicon sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene provides an opportunity to investigate changes in the salivary microbiome in health and disease. In this preliminary study, we investigated alterations in the bacterial, fungal, and archaeal components of the salivary microbiome between healthy subjects and patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma before and close to the end point of chemoradiation ("after"). We enrolled 31 patients and 11 healthy controls, with 11 patients providing samples both before and after chemoradiation. Analysis revealed an effect on the bacterial and fungal microbiome, with a partial antagonistic reaction but no effects on the archaeal microbial community. Specifically, we observed an individual increase in Candida signatures following chemoradiation, whereas the overall diversity of the microbial and fungal signatures decreased significantly after therapy. Thus, our study indicates that the patient microbiome reacts individually to chemoradiation but has potential for future optimization of disease diagnostics and personalized treatments.

Surgical Treatment of Paranasal Sinus Osteomas: A Single Center Experience of 58 Cases.

OBJECTIVES: Osteomas are osseous tumors that primarily occur at the skull, in particular the paranasal sinus system. Surgical tumor resection is the "gold standard" treatment in symptomatic osteomas. The aim of this study was to investigate the use of surgical approaches (endoscopic, open, combined) and to provide a step-by-step approach for patients' management. METHODS: Fifty-eight patients (31 m, 27 f, 42.1 ± 15.3 years) that were treated between 2001 and 2015 at our department were included in this retrospective, single center study. RESULTS: In almost half of cases (n = 28, 48.3%) endoscopic, endonasal approaches were used for tumor resection while open (n = 11, 19%) or combined (n = 19, 32.8%) approaches were used in the rest of the cohort. Open or combined approaches were applied in patients suffering from osteomas localized in the maxillary or frontal sinuses only. CONCLUSION: Beside interviews, clinical examination, nasal endoscopy, and computed tomography are crucial for diagnosis of paranasal sinus osteomas. Magnet resonance imaging can be useful in extensive pathologies. The preoperative selection of the optimal approach for osteoma resection might be most challenging in patients' management. Although useful recommendations regarding the use of surgical approaches have been published, technical requirements and surgical experience of surgeons have to be considered in the limitations of endoscopic approaches. If there are doubts about the resectability of an osteoma by an endoscopic approach, the surgical procedure may be started endoscopically, and, if necessary, it can be combined with an external approach. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: IV Laryngoscope, 130:2105-2113, 2020.