Post by Division of Nuclear Medicine (Medical University of Vienna)

New Publication Highlight | Multiomics & [¹⁸F]FDG PET/CT in HNSCC 📑   We are pleased to share a new publication co-authored by the research team of the Division of Nuclear Medicine (Medical University of Vienna):   [¹⁸F]FDG PET/CT multiomics identifies Hedgehog-driven HPV-negative head and neck squamous cell carcinoma – https://lnkd.in/dFceMKgX   Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) remains a highly heterogeneous disease, particularly in HPV-negative cases, where prognosis is often poor and predictive biomarkers are limited. Integrating molecular profiling with imaging biomarkers may help to better understand tumor biology and guide personalized treatment strategies. 🔍 Key findings at a glance: 1. Activation of the Hedgehog (HH) signaling pathway was associated with distinct [¹⁸F]FDG PET/CT radiomic features; 2. The PET-derived feature “histogram:ih.max”, reflecting peak tracer uptake, correlated with inferior survival outcomes; 3. Pharmacologic inhibition of HH signaling showed anticancer efficacy across multiple models, including cell lines, tumoroids, and xenografts; 4. HH pathway inhibition resulted in measurable reductions in [¹⁸F]FDG uptake, mirroring imaging patterns observed in patients; 5. Multi-level molecular and imaging integration enabled linking tumor biology with functional imaging features.   📌 These findings highlight the potential of combining multiomics and PET imaging to identify biologically distinct tumor subtypes and clinically relevant imaging biomarkers, providing a framework for biologically informed patient stratification and supporting further investigation of Hedgehog pathway inhibition as a therapeutic strategy in HPV-negative HNSCC. Congratulations to the author team on this important contribution to translational cancer imaging and precision oncology!   Stefan Stoiber, Daniel Pölöske, Clemens Spielvogel, Elisabeth Gurnhofer, Michaela Schlederer, David Haberl, Cécile Philippe, Dominik Elmer, Richard Morrigl, Heidi Neubauer, Vojtech Bystry, Karolína Trachtová, Hanne Verswyvel, Hannah Zaryouh, Abraham Lin, Christophe Deben, Gregor Heiduschka, Maik Dahlhoff, Fritz Aberger, Daniel Schramek, Marcus Hacker, Alexander Haug & Lukas Kenner   #NuclearMedicine #MolecularImaging #PETCT #FDG #HeadAndNeckCancer #HNSCC #HeadAndNeckOncology #SquamousCellCarcinoma #HPVNegativeHNSCC #CancerResearch #CancerHeterogeneity #Oncology #Genomics #Biomarker #CancerPathways #Radiomics #Multiomics #PrecisionOncology #TranslationalResearch #ClinicalResearch #HedgehogPathway #HedgehogSignaling #MolecularPathways #ImagingBiomarkers