Evaluating taste and saliva changes in head and neck cancer patients undergoing radiation therapy

Is this trial a fit for you?

A plain-English reading of the study's rules. Only the study team can confirm whether you qualify.

What this trial studies

This observational study aims to investigate the impact of radiation therapy on taste sensation in head and neck cancer patients. It will recruit 150 participants who will undergo both subjective and objective assessments of their taste, smell, and salivary function at various time points before, during, and after treatment. The primary focus is on understanding taste impairment and its effects on quality of life, measured through a standardized questionnaire 12 months post-therapy. The findings could help inform strategies to prevent taste-related side effects in future patients.

Why it matters

Who can join: the full rules

Inclusion Criteria:

* Head and neck cancer patients
* Referred for radiation therapy with curative intent, both definitive and post-operative
* Age ≥18
* Karnofsky performance index of at least 50%
* Anticipated mean radiation dose to the taste bud bearing tongue mucosa or at least one of the major salivary glands (parotid, submandibular, and/or sublingual gland) of at the minimum 5 Gy

Exclusion Criteria:

* Pregnancy
* Pre-existing subjective complete loss of taste before start of radiation therapy
* Planning CT and radiation therapy with oral stent or spacer
* Partial or total glossectomy which impairs taste assessments of at least one side of the tongue or impairs contouring of the taste bud bearing tongue mucosa on the planning CT
* Inability to follow instructions related to study procedures or inability to fill in the questionnaires
* Inability to provide informed consent

Where it's running

• Kantonsspital Aarau, Zentrum für Radio-Onkologie KSA-KSB
  Aarau, Canton of Aargau, Switzerland Recruiting
• Universitätsspital Bern
  Bern, Switzerland Not yet recruiting
• Universitätsspital Zürich
  Zurich, Switzerland Not yet recruiting

Study contacts

• Study coordinator: Sonja Stieb, MD
• Email: sonja.stieb@ksa.ch
• Phone: +41 62 838 4179

Similar studies

Other studies for the same condition or treatment. Recruiting studies are listed first.

• Phenotype-based Pain Guidance for Head and Neck Cancer-Related Pain (pilot)

  This pilot test sees if tailoring pain treatment to a patient’s pain type can reduce head and neck cancer pain in adults who haven’t started cancer treatment yet.

  Recruiting Phase 2 Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital & Research Centre · Lahore, Punjab Province · NCT07919444

• Airway ultrasound in head and neck cancer patients

  This observational study tests whether neck ultrasound measurements of the airway match CT measurements in adults with maxillofacial cancer undergoing surgery with anesthesia.

  Recruiting at 2 sites University Hospital Dubrava · Zagreb, City of Zagreb and 1 other locations · NCT07910149

• Safe use of metformin and naproxen to help prevent cancer in people with Fanconi anemia

  This study tests whether metformin and naproxen can lower the chance of cancer developing in adults with Fanconi anemia.

  Recruiting at 2 sites Phase 1 Rockefeller University · Minneapolis, Minnesota and 1 other locations · NCT07901959

• Iparomlimab and Tuvonralimab With Cetuximab Before Surgery in Resectable Oral Cancer

  In this phase 2 study, patients with locally advanced, resectable oral squamous cell carcinoma will receive a combination of iparomlimab, tuvonralimab, and cetuximab before surgery to see if the treatment is safe and can shrink tumors.

  Recruiting Phase 2 Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University · Shanghai, Shanghai Municipality · NCT07882888

• SumMET: Targeted radioligand therapy for c-MET–positive solid tumors

  This first‑in‑human study tests the safety and potential effectiveness of a radioligand therapy called [225Ac]Ac-FL-261 in adults with advanced or metastatic solid tumors that overexpress c-MET.

  Recruiting at 2 sites Phase 1/2 Full-Life Technologies UK Limited · Minneapolis, Minnesota and 1 other locations · NCT07873450

• Using Silverlon for head and neck patients with tracheostomies

  This early-phase study tests whether Silverlon dressings can prevent severe skin reactions under tracheostomy collars in adults with head and neck cancer.

  Recruiting Phase 1 State University of New York - Upstate Medical University · Syracuse, New York · NCT07856732

How to take part

1. Review the eligibility criteria above with your treating physician.
2. Check the official listing on ClinicalTrials.gov for the latest contact details and recruitment status.
3. Contact the study coordinator or principal investigator to ask for pre-screening. Pre-screening is free and never obligates you to enroll.