New Tumor Markers For The Prognosis Of Head And Neck Cancer

The survival rate for those with head and neck cancers has not improved much within the last decade--a heterogenous group of cancers located in the oral cavity. Instead, resarchers are now working to better understand the molecular biology of these tumors in order to improve both prognosis and treatment, according to new findings published n the journal Nature Communications.

During this recent study, researchers analysed biopsies on over 270 patients with head an neck cancers. They found that close to half of these patients had high p21 protein levels as well as mTOR activation. From this, they discovered that the presence of p21 is closely linked to the acitivty of mTOR and that both markers predict a less aggressive evolution of the disease.

The researchers also "unravelled the molecular mechanism by which p21 levels are linked to the activity of mTOR. In particular, when the mTOR protein is inactive, it dictates the degradation of p21, and, conversely, when mTOR is active, p21 becomes stable," according to a news release. 

In the future, classification based on these markers could allow to choose the best therapeutic option for each group, researchers say.

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