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Updated: May 8, 2026
Therapy Testing in a Spheroid-based 3D Cell Culture Model for Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma
Published on: April 20, 2018
Treatment response of HPV-positive and HPV-negative head and neck squamous cell carcinoma cell lines
Remco Nagel1, Sanne R Martens-de Kemp, Marijke Buijze
1Department of Otolaryngology/Head-Neck Surgery, VU Medical Centre, PO Box 7057, 1007 MB Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Objectives:
Infection with the human papillomavirus (HPV) is an important risk factor for development of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). Strikingly, HPV-positive HNSCCs have a more favorable prognosis than their HPV-negative counterparts. The current study was designed to explain this favorable prognosis of HPV-positive HNSCC.
Materials And Methods:
This was performed by investigating the response of four HPV-positive and fourteen HPV-negative HNSCC cell lines to cisplatin, cetuximab and radiation.
Results:
Analysis of the responses of this cell line panel indicated that HPV-positive cells are more resistant to cisplatin treatment than the HPV-negative HNSCCs, whereas the response to radiation and cetuximab did not differ.
Conclusions:
The current study suggests that the favorable prognosis for patients with HPV-positive HNSCC does not seem to be related to an intrinsic sensitivity of these tumor cells to chemotherapy or radiation in vitro.
