The role of intratumour therapy with electroporation and bleomycin in the management of advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck.
OBJECTIVE
To determine the safety and efficacy of electroporation with bleomycin in patients with advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck.


METHODS
Two open-label, multicenter, single-arm Phase II studies of intratumour electroporation therapy. Sixty-two patients with 86 squamous cell carcinoma tumours of the head and neck were enrolled. Twenty-five patients were treated with bleomycin alone. Fifty-four patients (17 initially treated with bleomycin alone) were treated with electroporation and bleomycin therapy. Local tumour response was measured.


RESULTS
In the bleomycin alone group, one tumour showed a partial response and 36 tumours showed no response to treatment. In the bleomycin with electroporation groups, 17 tumours showed complete response, 22 tumours showed partial response and 30 failed to achieve more than a 50% reduction in tumour size (no response). Bleomycin with electroporation had a significantly (p<0.001) greater number of patients showing a partial or complete response to the therapy when compared to bleomycin alone. Thirteen adverse events were reported which included five episodes of local bleeding, six local infections, one local tongue swelling and one cardiac arrhythmia.


CONCLUSIONS
Fifty-seven percent of squamous cell carcinomas of the head and neck demonstrated a partial or complete response to intratumour electroporation with bleomycin suggesting that further work investigating its use as a treatment for local control of these lesions should be pursued.
Bloom
D C
DC
Department of Otolaryngology--Head and Neck Surgery, Naval Medical Center Portsmouth, 620 John Paul Jones Circle, Portsmouth, VA 23708, USA.
Goldfarb
P M
PM
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects; D001761:Bleomycin / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000628:therapy*; D004599:Electric Stimulation Therapy / Q000009:adverse effects; D018274:Electroporation; D005260:Female; D006258:Head and Neck Neoplasms / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D015552:Injections, Intralesional; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged
D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D001761:Bleomycin