Featured Publications
Clinical value of transoral robotic surgery: Nationwide results from the first 5 years of adoption
Li H, Torabi SJ, Park HS, Yarbrough WG, Mehra S, Choi R, Judson BL. Clinical value of transoral robotic surgery: Nationwide results from the first 5 years of adoption. The Laryngoscope 2018, 129: 1844-1855. PMID: 30575965, DOI: 10.1002/lary.27740.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchMeSH KeywordsCarcinoma, Squamous CellChemoradiotherapy, AdjuvantChi-Square DistributionCombined Modality TherapyDatabases, FactualFemaleHumansKaplan-Meier EstimateMaleMargins of ExcisionMiddle AgedMultivariate AnalysisNatural Orifice Endoscopic SurgeryNeoplasm StagingOropharyngeal NeoplasmsProportional Hazards ModelsRegression AnalysisRetrospective StudiesRobotic Surgical ProceduresTreatment OutcomeUnited StatesConceptsOropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomaTransoral robotic surgeryTransoral laser microsurgeryNonrobotic surgeryTORS patientsPositive marginsTLM patientsLower likelihoodT2 oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomaEarly stage oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomaLong-term oncologic outcomesUse of TORSKaplan-Meier log-rank testRobotic surgeryNational Cancer DatabaseMajority of patientsMultivariate Cox analysisSquamous cell carcinomaLog-rank testChi-square testCox multivariateN3 diseaseAdjuvant chemoradiotherapyAdjuvant radiotherapyAdjuvant therapyTreatment Delays in Primarily Resected Oropharyngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma: National Benchmarks and Survival Associations
Morse E, Judson B, Husain Z, Burtness B, Yarbrough WG, Sasaki C, Cheraghlou S, Mehra S. Treatment Delays in Primarily Resected Oropharyngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma: National Benchmarks and Survival Associations. Otolaryngology 2018, 159: 987-997. PMID: 30060700, DOI: 10.1177/0194599818779052.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchHPV-positive patientsRadiation treatment durationTotal treatment packageOverall survivalTreatment initiationTreatment durationEnd intervalOropharyngeal cancerTreatment delayTreatment packageOropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomaCox proportional hazards regressionMultivariable logistic regression analysisRadiation treatmentRetrospective cross-sectional analysisNational Cancer DatabaseProportional hazards regressionSquamous cell carcinomaDuration of diagnosisLogistic regression analysisNational benchmarksCross-sectional analysisMedian durationOverall cohortHazards regression
2024
Detection, Patterns, and Outcomes of Recurrent HPV-Positive Oropharyngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma
Shah R, Wilkins S, Safranek C, Shah H, Brophy C, Mehra S. Detection, Patterns, and Outcomes of Recurrent HPV-Positive Oropharyngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma. JAMA Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery 2024, 150 PMID: 39418066, PMCID: PMC11581730, DOI: 10.1001/jamaoto.2024.3237.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchHPV-positive oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomaOropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomaSquamous cell carcinomaDistant metastasisDisease recurrenceCell carcinomaRecurrence detectionHuman papillomavirus (HPV)-positive oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomaCohort studyMethod of recurrence detectionSurveillance strategiesSurveillance imaging strategiesLocation of recurrencePatterns of recurrenceFollow-up timeElectronic medical record reviewOptimal surveillance strategyPercentage of patientsRetrospective cohort studyIncidence of DMTertiary care hospitalDiagnosis to deathMedical record reviewRecurrence cohortRegional recurrenceThe Impact of Four Smoking Metrics on Survival After Diagnosis with HPV+ Oropharyngeal Cancer
Wilkins S, Shah R, Safranek C, Shah H, Mehra S. The Impact of Four Smoking Metrics on Survival After Diagnosis with HPV+ Oropharyngeal Cancer. The Laryngoscope 2024, 134: 3158-3164. PMID: 38294283, DOI: 10.1002/lary.31319.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchOropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomaRecurrence-free survivalHPV+ oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomaOverall survivalPack-yearsTobacco useRetrospective review of patientsImpact overall survivalReview of patientsSquamous cell carcinomaSmoking metricsInferior OSImpact of tobacco useMetastatic diseaseImpact of smokingPrognostic significanceRetrospective reviewCell carcinomaSmoking historyUnivariate analysisNever-smokersMultivariate analysisSmoking statusPatientsInclusion criteria
2023
Automated AJCC Restaging for Oropharyngeal Cancer Research
Safranek C, Wilkins S, Shah R, Mehra S. Automated AJCC Restaging for Oropharyngeal Cancer Research. Otolaryngology 2023, 170: 627-629. PMID: 37855637, DOI: 10.1002/ohn.558.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchOropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomaComputational toolsData setsLarge data setsOpen-source designSimilar toolsHuman papillomavirus-positive oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomaAmerican Joint CommitteeHPV-negative counterpartsSquamous cell carcinomaGuideline updateCell carcinomaAJCC editionToolEdition criteriaClinical tumorsJoint CommitteeSetCancer typesAlgorithmAccurate analysisAJCCCancer researchRole of PET/CT in Oropharyngeal Cancers
Avery E, Joshi K, Mehra S, Mahajan A. Role of PET/CT in Oropharyngeal Cancers. Cancers 2023, 15: 2651. PMID: 37174116, PMCID: PMC10177278, DOI: 10.3390/cancers15092651.Peer-Reviewed Original Research
2022
Impact of HIV infection on clinical outcomes among people diagnosed with head and neck cancer.
Salahuddin S, Cohen O, Wu M, Irizarry J, Vega T, Gan G, Deng Y, Isaeva N, Schalper K, Mehra S, Yarbrough W, Emu B. Impact of HIV infection on clinical outcomes among people diagnosed with head and neck cancer. Journal Of Clinical Oncology 2022, 40: e18080-e18080. DOI: 10.1200/jco.2022.40.16_suppl.e18080.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchOropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomaCD8 T cell infiltrationPD-L1 expressionUninfected patientsT cell infiltrationPoor outcomeHNC patientsInsurance statusRace/ethnicityMedian survivalQuantitative immunofluorescenceIndependent predictorsClinical outcomesViral loadCell infiltrationNeck cancerAnatomic sitesTobacco useMultivariate analysisLow PD-L1 expressionCombination antiretroviral therapy eraTumor microenvironmentAntiretroviral therapy eraMedian CD4 countHIV viral load
2020
Revisiting the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group 1221 Hypothesis: Treatment for Stage III/IV HPV-Negative Oropharyngeal Cancer
Jacobs D, Torabi SJ, Park HS, Rahmati R, Young MR, Mehra S, Judson BL. Revisiting the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group 1221 Hypothesis: Treatment for Stage III/IV HPV-Negative Oropharyngeal Cancer. Otolaryngology 2020, 164: 1240-1248. PMID: 33198564, DOI: 10.1177/0194599820969613.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsNational Cancer DatabaseHPV-negative oropharyngeal cancersChemoradiation therapyOverall survivalCancer DatabaseOropharyngeal cancerHPV-negative oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomaLarge national cancer databaseNeck cancer-specific survivalOropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomaCox proportional hazards regressionKaplan-Meier survival analysisCancer-specific survivalImproved overall survivalMultivariable Cox regressionRetrospective cohort studyAdjuvant chemoradiation therapyUse of surgeryEnd Results ProgramProportional hazards regressionSquamous cell carcinomaSEER cohortAdjuvant therapyCohort studySEER database
2018
National treatment times in oropharyngeal cancer treated with primary radiation or chemoradiation
Morse E, Judson B, Husain Z, Burtness B, Yarbrough W, Sasaki C, Cheraghlou S, Mehra S. National treatment times in oropharyngeal cancer treated with primary radiation or chemoradiation. Oral Oncology 2018, 82: 122-130. PMID: 29909886, DOI: 10.1016/j.oraloncology.2018.02.010.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsRadiation treatment durationHuman papilloma virus-positive tumorsVirus-positive tumorsOverall survivalOropharyngeal cancerTreatment durationTreatment endMedian durationTreatment initiationTreatment delayHuman papilloma virus-associated tumorsHuman papilloma virus-negative tumorsEnd intervalOropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomaCox proportional hazards regressionNational Cancer DatabaseProportional hazards regressionSquamous cell carcinomaVirus-associated tumorsVirus-negative tumorsMultivariable logisticHazards regressionCell carcinomaHuman papillomaCancer DatabaseUpfront surgery versus definitive chemoradiotherapy in patients with human Papillomavirus-associated oropharyngeal squamous cell cancer
Kelly JR, Park HS, An Y, Yarbrough WG, Contessa JN, Decker R, Mehra S, Judson BL, Burtness B, Husain Z. Upfront surgery versus definitive chemoradiotherapy in patients with human Papillomavirus-associated oropharyngeal squamous cell cancer. Oral Oncology 2018, 79: 64-70. PMID: 29598952, DOI: 10.1016/j.oraloncology.2018.02.017.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsNational Cancer DatabasePrimary surgeryOverall survivalAdjuvant chemoradiotherapyDefinitive chemoradiotherapyUpfront surgerySurgical patientsHuman papillomavirus-associated oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomaOropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomaPropensity score-matched analysisOropharyngeal squamous cell cancerCox proportional hazards regressionMultivariable Cox regressionNon-private insuranceInferior overall survivalMargin-negative resectionSquamous cell cancerProportional hazards regressionSquamous cell carcinomaLog-rank testChi-square testClinicopathologic predictorsSimilar OSSurgery patientsTrimodal therapy
2017
A Comparison of Prognostic Ability of Staging Systems for Human Papillomavirus–Related Oropharyngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma
Husain ZA, Chen T, Corso CD, Wang Z, Park H, Judson B, Yarbrough W, Deshpande H, Mehra S, Kuo P, Decker RH, Burtness BA. A Comparison of Prognostic Ability of Staging Systems for Human Papillomavirus–Related Oropharyngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma. JAMA Oncology 2017, 3: 358-365. PMID: 27737449, DOI: 10.1001/jamaoncol.2016.4581.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsOropharyngeal squamous cell cancerAJCC/UICC systemStaging systemStage IAStage IBHuman papillomavirusPrognostic abilityUICC systemAJCC/UICC staging systemStage IICurrent American Joint CommitteeOropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomaInternational Cancer Control (UICC) staging systemOropharyngeal cancer NetworkNational Cancer DatabasePrimary radiation therapyOverall survival rateAmerican Joint CommitteeCancer/UnionEdition staging systemKaplan-Meier methodSquamous cell cancerNovel staging systemSquamous cell carcinomaLog-rank test