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Brief Title: Exosome Testing as a Screening Modality for Human Papillomavirus-Positive Oropharyngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma
Official Title: An Observational, Single-Institution Pilot/Feasibility Study of Exosome Testing as a Screening Modality for Human Papillomavirus-Positive Oropharyngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma
Study ID: NCT02147418
Brief Summary: Cancer of the oropharynx (middle, side and back walls of the throat; back of the tongue; soft palate, and tonsils), or oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC), has been on the rise in the United States. Human papillomavirus (HPV) has been recognized in many of these cancers, and testing for HPV has contributed to the higher reported rates of OPSCC. In this study, our goal is to develop a new test that can detect certain HPV proteins in the blood or saliva to help improve detection of OPSCC.
Detailed Description: While secondary screening strategies have successfully reduced the rate of HPV-positive cervical cancers, an effective screening modality for HPV-OPSCC does not exist. A central problem in the early diagnosis of HPV-OPSCC is the relative inaccessibility of the tonsillar crypts, where oncogenic infections are thought to originate. Unlike the relatively smooth surface of the cervix which permits mechanical sampling with Pap tests and which can be evaluated visually for evidence of dysplasia, much of the tonsillar epithelium is found below the surface in a complex network. As a consequence, any screening modality cannot depend upon direct access to malignant lesions. What is needed is a minimally invasive, diffusible or circulating marker of HPV-OPSCC, and a means to collect and detect it.
Minimum Age: 18 Years
Eligible Ages: ADULT, OLDER_ADULT
Sex: ALL
Healthy Volunteers: Yes
University of New Mexico Cancer Center, Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States
Name: Andrew Cowan, MD
Affiliation: University of New Mexico Cancer Center
Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR