Marisol Miranda-Galvis

Despite advances in tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) therapy, outcomes in chronic myeloid leukemia remain (CML) highly variable, underscoring the need to explore determinants beyond conventional clinical indicators. This study examined the relationship between allostatic load (AL), a biomarker-based index of cumulative chronic stress, social determinants of health (SDH), and treatment outcomes. In a retrospective cohort of 194 patients, AL was calculated using 23 biomarkers spanning cardiovascular, metabolic, hematologic, renal, and hepatic systems. Higher AL was associated with adverse SDH and behavioral factors, including greater extreme poverty (p = 0.02), limited transportation access (p = 0.02), reliance on public health coverage (p = 0.03), and physical inactivity (p = 0.05). Each unit increase in AL reduced the odds of achieving optimal molecular response by 18% (p = 0.02). All 11 disease progressions to advanced CML and all 9 deaths occurred in the high AL group, who also had higher rates of composite adverse events, including loss of molecular response, TKI failure, disease progression, and mortality (p = 0.03). These findings position AL as a promising integrative biomarker to identify high-risk patients facing combined physiological stress burden and social disadvantage, enabling oncology practices to refine risk stratification and implement personalized, multidisciplinary interventions.

This study investigates COVID-19 outcomes and immune response in chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) patients post-SARS-CoV-2 vaccination, comparing effectiveness of various vaccine options. Data from 118 CML patients (85 in Brazil, 33 in the US) showed similar infection rates prior (14% Brazil, 9.1% US) and post-vaccination (24.7% vs. 27.3%, respectively). In Brazil, AstraZeneca and CoronaVac were the most commonly used vaccine brands, while in the US, Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines dominated. Despite lower seroconversion in the Brazilian cohort, all five vaccine brands analyzed prevented severe COVID-19. Patients who received mRNA and recombinant viral vector vaccines (HR: 2.20; 95%CI 1.07-4.51; p < .031) and those that had achieved at least major molecular response (HR: 1.51; 95% CI 1.01-3.31; p < .0001) showed higher seroconversion rates. Our findings suggest that CML patients can generate antibody responses regardless of the vaccine brand, thereby mitigating severe COVID-19. This effect is more pronounced in patients with well-controlled disease.

Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection has recently been linked to a subset of cancers affecting the oral cavity. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying HPV-driven oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) onset and progression are poorly understood. Methods: We performed MS-based proteomics profiling based on HPV status in OSCC in young patients, following biological characterization and cell assays to explore the proteome functional landscape. Results: Thirty-nine proteins are differentially abundant between HPV (+) and HPV (−) OSCC. Among them, COPS3, DYHC1, and S100A8 are unfavorable for tumor recurrence and survival, in contrast to A2M and Serpine1, low levels of which show an association with better DFS. Remarkably, S100A8 is considered an independent prognostic factor for lower survival rates, and at high levels, it alters tumor-associated immune profiling, showing a lower proportion of M1 macrophages and dendritic cells. HPV (+) OSCC also displayed the pathogen-associated patterns receptor that, when activated, triggered the S100A8 and NFκB inflammatory responses. Conclusion: HPV (+) OSCC has a peculiar microenvironment pattern distinctive from HPV (−), involving the expression of pathogen-associated pattern receptors, S100A8 overexpression, and NFκB activation and responses, which has important consequences in prognosis and may guide therapeutic decisions.

Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are malignant cells separate from primary tumors, which can migrate through the peripheral blood, colonize other tissues, and lead to the formation of metastases. The first description of CTCs dates back to 1869 when Thomas Ashworth recognized malignant cells similar to the ones of the primary tumor in the blood vessels of an autopsied patient with metastatic cancer. Currently, CTCs have been identified in various types of cancer and have been recognized for their clinical value in the prediction of prognosis, diagnosis of minimal residual diseases, assessment of tumor sensitivity to anticancer drugs, and personalization of therapies. However, research about these topics has several limitations, principally the rarity of CTCs in bloodstream and their heterogeneous characteristics, which makes detection and isolation difficult. As a result of these limitations, current studies are focused on improvement of isolation and characterization techniques to achieve better sensitivity in clinical applications. This review covers the methods of CTC isolation and detection and current research progression on CTC in different cancer types. The clinical applications, limitations, and perspectives of CTCs are also discussed. Keywords Circulating tumor cells Cancer Liquid biopsy Micrometastases Metastasis

Epidemiological and clinical studies over the past two decades have provided strong evidence that genetic elements interacting with environmental components can individually and collectively influence one’s susceptibility to cancer. In addition to tumorigenic properties, numerous environmental factors, such as nutrition, chemical carcinogens, and tobacco/alcohol consumption, possess pro-invasive and pro-metastatic cancer features. In contrast to traditional cancer treatment, modern therapeutics not only take into account an individual’s genetic makeup but also consider gene–environment interactions. The current review sharpens the focus by elaborating on the impact that environmental factors have on the pathogenesis and progression of head and neck cancer and the underlying molecular mechanisms involved. Recent advances, challenges, and future perspectives in this area of research are also discussed. Inhibiting key environmental drivers of tumor progression should yield survival benefits for patients at any stage of head and neck cancer.

Background: Despite the well‐known role of programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD‐L1) in promoting immune resistance in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), its potential utility as a prognostic biomarker is undetermined. We evaluated PD‐L1 expression as predictor of survival in patients with OSCC and explored PD‐L1 expression patterns.Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study that assessed PD‐L1 expression through immunohistochemistry in 123 surgical specimens of OSCC. A first approach evaluated tumor proportion scores (TPS) and combined proportion scores (CPS). Next, expression patterns were examined by evaluating PD‐L1 localization in tumor nests, as well as the interfaces of tumor cells (TC) and immune cells (IC) in the tumor microenvironment.Results: High‐level PD‐L1 expression determined by TPS and CPS using variable cutoffs was not associated with survival. Immunohistochemistry revealed that TC expressed PD‐L1 in either patchy or diffuse patterns. The patchy pattern was an independent risk factor for overall survival. Furthermore, expression patterns in the tumor immune microenvironment showed that most cases expressed PD‐L1 on both TC and IC, while PD‐L1 non‐expressors had the lowest overall survival.Conclusion: PD‐L1 expression patterns in the context of localization in tumor nests and TC—IC interactions represent antitumor immune responses better than either TPS or CPS. Our suggested classification system may have important implications for the characterization of OSCC and for the use of PD‐L1 as a prognostic biomarker.

Despite the long‐term survival rates of osseointegrated dental implants, several biological complications are known to affect the peri‐implant tissues, such as peri‐implant mucositis and peri‐implantitis. Occasionally, the clinical features of these more common benign lesions, or others nonrelated to implants, might be similar to oral malignancies, leading to misdiagnosis. The objective of this study was to present a case series of oral cancer located adjacent to dental implants, aimed to identify the reasons for initial misinterpretation of diagnosis. Thirteen patients, 10 females and 3 males, aged 59 to 90, were assessed. Among the differential diagnoses established, a malignant or premalignant lesion was not considered in 10 out of the 13 patients. Peri‐implantitis was the most common preliminary diagnosis, followed by fungal infection, viral infections, and traumatic ulcers. The meantime for the diagnosis of oral cancer was 21.5 months. The clinical presentation of peri‐implant malignancy, such as ulceration, white and red plaques, and exophytic lesions, might mimic benign diseases that are more common in the oral cavity. Suspicious lesions with treatment failure that persist for more than 2 weeks require biopsy and histopathological analysis to establish an early definitive diagnosis to improve the prognosis and quality of life of the patients.