How effective are our two-week-wait guidelines in picking up head and neck cancer?

With a 30% increase in the incidence of head and neck cancer since 1999 in the UK, it is important that the two-week wait referral guidelines safely encompass all risk factors but also render these urgent referrals based on signs...

Predicting which oropharyngeal SCC HPV-positive patients should avoid de-escalated treatment

This study is timely for many reasons and raises very important questions in the management of the current rise in HPV-positive patients with oropharyngeal cancer (OPC). The uniqueness of this group within head and neck cancer in terms of favourable...

Influence of smoking on vocal fold polyps

A vocal fold polyp is a benign lesion related to phonotrauma which induces upregulation of inflammatory processes and histological changes can occur in the epithelium and lamina propria. Whether smoking produces additional or enhanced changes is the subject of this...

Friendly bacteria in the ear nose and throat to combat the bad…

The author presents a thorough review of bacterial interference and the studies that have been conducted in common ENT conditions. The simple concept is that a strong population of normal flora will interfere with colonisation and subsequent infection by pathogenic...