Clinical trial · Observational
The Effects of Upper Airway and Digestive Tract Tumors on the Immune System
A Pilot Study of Immunoregulatory Factor Expression and Immune Responses in Patients With Squamous Cell Carcinoma or Papilloma of the Upper Aerodigestive Tract
- Source
- ClinicalTrials.gov
- Retrieved
- Sep 8, 2026
- Layer
- normalized (units and labels harmonized; values unchanged)
- Run
- ING-CLINICALTRIALS-20260908-000001
Summary
Brief summary (as posted)
The goal of this study is to learn how tumors of the upper airway and digestive passages (tongue, throat, mouth, and voicebox) affect the body's immune defenses and energy storage. Previous studies have shown that tumors of the vocal tract produce signals that could help the tumor escape the body's immune defenses and use the body's energy and mineral stores to grow. Researchers are hoping to learn more about what signals give tumor cells an advantage to live and grow, how tumor cells control these signals, and how these signals affect the rest of the body. This study will look closer at researchers belief that tumors in the vocal tract contain genes (genetic information) that abnormally function to allow the tumors to survive and grow against the attack of the body's normal immune system Patients with cancerous tumors (squamous cell carcinoma) and benign (non-cancerous) tumors (papilloma) of the upper aerodigestive tract who are candidates for standard or investigational therapy are eligible to participate in this study. Tumor cells will be collected from patients participating in the study, who will undergo standard surgical treatment or biopsies for their conditions. Once tumor cells are collected they can be analyzed for their genetic make-up. In addition, patients will undergo several tests using skin, blood, and urine to look closely at the function of their immune systems and metabolism.
Conditions
Conditions (5)
Free-text conditions as registered, with the CancerIndex entity they were reconciled to and the match type.
| Condition (as posted) | Mapped entity | Match | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Esophageal Neoplasm | Esophageal Neoplasm | ONTOLOGY_EXACT | 0.98 |
| Head and Neck Neoplasm | Head and Neck Neoplasm | ONTOLOGY_EXACT | 0.98 |
| Laryngeal Neoplasm | Laryngeal Neoplasm | ONTOLOGY_EXACT | 0.98 |
| Papilloma | Papilloma | ONTOLOGY_EXACT | 0.98 |
| Squamous Cell Carcinoma | Squamous Cell Carcinoma | ONTOLOGY_EXACT | 0.98 |
Interventions
Interventions (0)
Data not yet available
Eligibility
Eligibility (as posted)
- Sex
- All
Show eligibility criteria text
INCLUSION CRITERIA Biopsy proven squamous cell carcinoma or papilloma. Age greater than 18. No immunodeficiency (congenital or acquired).
References
Publications (3)
- BACKGROUNDWang MB, Lichtenstein A, Mickel RA. Hierarchical immunosuppression of regional lymph nodes in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 1991 Oct;105(4):517-27. doi: 10.1177/019459989110500403. PMID 1762790
- BACKGROUNDSato K, Mimura H, Han DC, Kakiuchi T, Ueyama Y, Ohkawa H, Okabe T, Kondo Y, Ohsawa N, Tsushima T, et al. Production of bone-resorbing activity and colony-stimulating activity in vivo and in vitro by a human squamous cell carcinoma associated with hypercalcemia and leukocytosis. J Clin Invest. 1986 Jul;78(1):145-54. doi: 10.1172/JCI112544. PMID 3487554
- BACKGROUNDGallo O, Gori AM, Attanasio M, Martini F, Giusti B, Brunelli T, Gallina E. Interleukin-6 and acute-phase proteins in head and neck cancer. Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 1995;252(3):159-62. doi: 10.1007/BF00178104. PMID 7544987