Head and neck cancer trials

Cancer clinical trials are designed to test new ways to:. Treat Cancer Find and diagnose cancer Prevent cancer Manage symptoms of cancer; side effects from its treatment. Key information to know for your head and neck cancer clinical trial search includes:.

Histology squamous cell carcinoma, adenoid cystic carcinoma, adenocarcinoma, etc. Site of head and neck cancer tonsil, parotid gland, larynx, etc. Recurrent or First Presentation. If recurrent, know how it was treated before surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, and drugs used for treatment. Phase 1 Screening for safety. Phase 2 Establishing the efficacy of the drug, usually against a placebo. Phase 3 Final confirmation of safety and efficacy. Testing with large groups of people 1,—3, to confirm its efficacy, evaluate its effectiveness, monitor side effects, compare it to commonly used treatments, and collect information that will allow it to be used safely.

Phase 4 Safety studies during sales. Postmarketing studies delineate additional information, including the treatment's risks, benefits, and optimal use. Learn More. Head and neck cancer clinical trials are important research studies designed to evaluate the effectiveness of promising new therapies in comparison to the currently available options. The goal is to find better ways to treat cancer — and ultimately find a cure — while enhancing patient quality of life.

All new treatment options are evaluated in this way; in fact, the current standard of care was once available only through clinical trials. As a recognized leader in performing groundbreaking cancer research, Moffitt Cancer Center has a nationally acclaimed clinical trials program with active protocols for various types of head and neck cancer.

For instance, our researchers are studying:. Patients who take part in clinical trials can not only contribute to the existing knowledge base to help all current and future cancer patients, but also benefit personally by being closely monitored by a team of cancer experts as they receive either the current standard of care or new treatments that are unavailable elsewhere. Patients who turn to Moffitt for head or neck cancer treatment can feel confident that they will receive the most effective treatment options available — whether or not they choose to participate in clinical trials.

The prospect of safely reducing radiation therapy in a subset of patients, therefore, would mean reduced side effects as well. Lewis and Madabhushi are co-principal investigators of two major research project R01 grants from the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health that are applying artificial intelligence AI and computer-aided image analysis techniques to improve the prognostication and treatment of head and neck cancers.

In the future, pathology slides will be digitized and analyzed by computer routinely, Lewis predicted. Those things are getting closer to clinical practice. He also helped assemble the large, diverse cohort of patient slides for digitized images and corresponding clinical outcome data that were provided by contributors from across the country.