Use of transoral nasopharyngeal brush biopsy for Epstein-Barr virus DNA detection of local recurrence of nasopharyngeal carcinoma after radiotherapy

Abstract

Background: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the use of transoral nasopharyngeal brush biopsies and quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) DNA detection system in surveillance of local recurrence of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).

Methods: A prospective cohort study was performed to compare the nasopharyngeal epithelial EBV DNA levels of patients with recurrent NPC and the control group of postirradiated patients with NPC disease in remission.

Results: Fourteen patients with recurrent NPC and 15 postirradiated patients in disease remission were recruited for transoral brush biopsies. There was a statistically significant difference between the mean EBV detection level (EDL) of the recurrence group (EDL = 2.38) and the control group (EDL = 0.17; p < .0001). There was no significant correlation between the EDL and the recurrence of T classification disease.

Conclusion: The transoral brush biopsy and qPCR EBV DNA detection system may provide an additional surveillance strategy for recurrence of NPC. Further study is required to validate its sensitivity, specificity, and cost-effectiveness. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck 38: E1301-E1304, 2016.

Keywords: Epstein-Barr virus (EBV); nasopharyngeal carcinoma; recurrent cancer; surveillance; transoral brush biopsy.