Exhaled breath analysis in the diagnosis of head and neck cancer

Antti A Mäkitie; Alhadi Almangush; Omar Youssef; Markus Metsälä; Suvi Silén; Iain J Nixon; Missak Haigentz Jr; Juan P Rodrigo; Nabil F Saba; Vincent Vander Poorten; Alfio Ferlito

doi:10.1002/hed.26043

Exhaled breath analysis in the diagnosis of head and neck cancer

Head Neck. 2020 Apr;42(4):787-793. doi: 10.1002/hed.26043. Epub 2019 Dec 19.

Authors

Antti A Mäkitie^{1

2

3}, Alhadi Almangush^{2

4

5

6}, Omar Youssef^{2

4}, Markus Metsälä⁷, Suvi Silén¹, Iain J Nixon⁸, Missak Haigentz Jr⁹, Juan P Rodrigo¹⁰, Nabil F Saba¹¹, Vincent Vander Poorten¹², Alfio Ferlito¹³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland.
² Research Program in Systems Oncology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.
³ Division of Ear, Nose and Throat Diseases, Department of Clinical Sciences, Intervention and Technology, Karolinska Institutet and Karolinska Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden.
⁴ Department of Pathology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.
⁵ Institute of Biomedicine, Pathology, University of Turku, Turku, Finland.
⁶ Faculty of Dentistry, University of Misurata, Misurata, Libya.
⁷ Department of Chemistry, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.
⁸ Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, NHS Lothian, Edinburgh University, Edinburgh, UK.
⁹ Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Medicine, Morristown Medical Center/Atlantic Health System, Morristown, New Jersey.
¹⁰ Department of Otolaryngology, Hospital Universitario Central de Asturias-University of Oviedo, ISPA, IUOPA, CIBERONC, Oviedo, Spain.
¹¹ Department of Hematology and Medical Oncology, Winship Cancer Institute, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia.
¹² Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery and Department of Oncology, Section of Head and Neck Oncology, University Hospitals Leuven, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
¹³ International Head and Neck Scientific Group, Padua, Italy.

PMID: 31854494
DOI: 10.1002/hed.26043

Abstract

Head and neck cancer (HNC) comprises a heterogeneous group of upper aerodigestive tract malignant neoplasms, the most frequent of which is squamous cell carcinoma. HNC forms the eighth most common cancer type and the incidence is increasing. However, survival has improved only moderately during the past decades. Currently, early diagnosis remains the mainstay for improving treatment outcomes in this patient population. Unfortunately, screening methods to allow early detection of HNC are not yet established. Therefore, many cases are still diagnosed at advanced stage, compromising outcomes. Exhaled breath analysis (EBA) is a diagnostic tool that has been recently introduced for many cancers. Breath analysis is non-invasive, cost-effective, time-saving, and can potentially be applied for cancer screening. Here, we provide a summary of the accumulated evidence on the feasibility of EBA in the diagnosis of HNC.

Keywords: diagnosis; exhaled breath analysis; head and neck cancer.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Breath Tests
Carcinoma, Squamous Cell* / diagnosis
Early Detection of Cancer
Head and Neck Neoplasms* / diagnosis
Humans
Mass Screening