3'-Deoxy-3'-[18F] Fluorothymidine and Fludeoxyglucose F 18 PET Scans in Evaluating Response to Cetuximab, Cisplatin, and Radiation Therapy in Patients With Advanced Cancer of the Oropharynx, Larynx, or Hypopharynx

OBJECTIVES:

Primary

• To assess whether 3'-deoxy-3'-[18F] fluorothymidine (FLT) and fludeoxyglucose F 18 (FDG) PET scans can be used to identify patients with advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the oropharynx, larynx, or hypopharynx who have a biochemical response after 2 weeks of induction therapy with cetuximab.
• To assess whether FLT and FDG PET imaging-based response after 20-30 Gy of radiotherapy is predictive of disease control at 6 months after completion of therapy.

Secondary

• To assess whether FLT and FDG PET imaging-based response after cetuximab therapy and/or 20-30 Gy of radiotherapy is predictive of pathologic complete response in these patients.
• To assess whether FLT and FDG PET imaging-based response after cetuximab therapy and/or 20-30 Gy of radiotherapy is predictive of disease-free survival at 2 years in these patients.
• To correlate suppression of FLT uptake after cetuximab therapy with thymidine kinase 1 activity and/or expression, proliferation, microvessel density, apoptosis, and signaling pathway analyses.
• To correlate suppression of FDG uptake after cetuximab therapy with expression of hexokinases, glucose transporter proliferation, microvessel density, apoptosis, and signaling pathway analyses.
• To test and refine the ability of a novel commercial software package to quantify treatment-induced structural and functional/molecular volumetric and sub-volumetric change.
• To develop a working method for expressing change and predicting outcome.

OUTLINE: Patients receive cetuximab IV on days 1 and 8 of course 1. Beginning in course 2 and all subsequent courses, patients receive cetuximab IV and cisplatin IV over 2 hours on day 1 and undergo radiotherapy once daily 5 days a week for 7 weeks. Treatment repeats every 7 days for a total of 8 courses in the absence of disease progression or unacceptable toxicity.

Patients undergo 3'-deoxy-3'-[18F] fluorothymidine and fludeoxyglucose F 18 (FDG) PET scans at baseline, after the second dose of cetuximab, after 20-30 Gy of radiotherapy, and then at 6 weeks and 6 months after completion of radiotherapy.

Patients undergo tumor tissue biopsies at baseline and after the first dose of cetuximab for correlative laboratory studies. Samples are analyzed for proliferation (Ki-67 labeling index), microvessel density (CD-31 staining), apoptosis (TUNEL assay and caspase-3 by IHC) signaling pathway (expression of EGFR, AKT, and MAPK by IHC), molecules affecting FDG uptake (expression of GLUT1, GLUT3, and hexokinase by IHC), and thymidine kinase 1 activity or expression.

After completion of study treatment, patients are followed every 3 months for up to 5 years.