Molecular markers as prognostic factors for local recurrence and radioresistance in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

Squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck affects more than 500,000 peop le worldwide each year, Local-regional recurrence of disease is a common an d challenging oncological problem in patients affected by this disease. Ide ntification of risk factors for local relapse after appropriate local thera py with surgery, radiation, or combination therapy remains an active area o f clinical research. The recent development of novel molecular markers has resulted in numerous studies evaluating the prognostic significance and pot ential clinical utility of these markers in identifying patients at risk fo r local-regional relapse, This article reviews recent studies evaluating mo lecular markers, including p53, angiogenesis-related markers, cyclin D1, ep idermal growth factor receptor, loss of heterozygosity, DNA ploidy, and cel l kinetic markers. The potential clinical utility of these markers and futu re directions along this avenue of investigation are discussed. (C) 1999 Wi ley-Liss, Inc.