title: Screening for head and neck cancer in liver transplant candidates: a review of 11 years of experience at the University of Pittsburgh.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  At our institution, any liver transplant candidate with a recent history of smoking combined with daily use of alcohol prior to a 6-month sobriety period warrants formal evaluation by otolaryngology. Given the significant resource consumption and lack of evidence in support of this strategy, we sought to determine the effectiveness of these guidelines in detecting head and neck cancer.
  
  
  METHODS
  Retrospective review of clinical database and patient billing records.
  
  
  METHODS
  Under an institutional review board-approved protocol, a search was performed for patients seen at our institution's otolaryngology office from 1999 to 2010. This patient list was cross-matched with the patients evaluated for transplant at the University of Pittsburgh Starzl Transplantation Institute during the same timeframe. A search for the diagnosis of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (HNC) among these patients was carried out through both a National Cancer Institute-affiliated clinical research registry and ICD-9 codes from billing records. Otolaryngology attending physicians were also asked to recall detection of HNC upon screening of this patient population.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of 581 patient evaluations performed by the otolaryngologist for HNC screening prior to liver transplantation from 1999 to 2009, one (0.17% of evaluations) case of HNC was detected.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Given the consumption of resources required for this screening strategy and the limited yield, it appears that current screening guidelines are ineffective and need to be reconsidered.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.
authors.forename: Raj C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Dedhia
authors.forename: Jennifer R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Grandis
authors.forename: Paulo A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Fontes
authors.forename: Jonas T
authors.initials: JT
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.forename: Joel
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Weissfeld
mesh_terms: D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006258:Head and Neck Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D017093:Liver Failure / Q000150:complications / Q000601:surgery; D016031:Liver Transplantation; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards; D008875:Middle Aged; D010414:Pennsylvania / Q000453:epidemiology; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D057234:Preoperative Period; D011379:Prognosis; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D000077195:Squamous Cell Carcinoma of Head and Neck; D014495:Universities