Back

RQ 3. Standardise the decision-making processes for patients who have technically operable, Salivary Gland Cancer (SGC), where the surgery carries high morbidity

RQ3 was established to explore how treatment decisions can be improved for people with salivary gland cancer, particularly where surgery is technically possible but may involve significant side effects or impact on quality of life.

Salivary gland cancers include many different tumour types, each of which can behave differently. Because these cancers are rare, there is often limited evidence to guide difficult treatment decisions, and patients may face very different treatment options depending on the location, biology and extent of their cancer.

The RQ3 Research Working Group brings together patients, clinicians and researchers to develop research that can improve how these decisions are made and support more personalised approaches to surgical treatment.

Standardising outcome reporting

To make the best possible use of the evidence available to guide treatment and surgical decision-making, we need to be able to compare outcomes across different studies. This requires researchers to measure and report outcomes consistently. These outcomes also need to reflect what matters to patients. Alongside measures such as cancer control and survival, research should consider the wider impact of treatment, including symptoms, function and quality of life.

Our work is therefore contributing towards the development of a Core Outcome Set for salivary gland cancer trials. A Core Outcome Set is an agreed minimum set of outcomes that should be measured and reported in all research studies for a particular condition. Using a common set of outcomes will make it easier to compare research findings, combine evidence across studies and provide better information to support treatment decisions.

This work is being developed in accordance with the COMET (Core Outcome Measures in Effectiveness Trials) Initiative, which supports the development and use of Core Outcome Sets in health research.

Learn more about the COMET Initiative

Understanding variation in surgical practice

This project is examining how surgeons across the UK approach difficult decisions in salivary gland cancer surgery.

By identifying where practice is consistent and where approaches vary, we hope to identify important questions for future research and ultimately support more consistent, evidence-
based discussions between patients and their clinical teams.

[Survey link coming soon]

Towards personalised treatment through cancer biology

Personalised medicine aims to tailor treatment to the individual patient and their cancer. This includes understanding the biological differences between cancer types and combining this information with clinical, imaging and patient factors to inform personalised surgical approaches and other treatment decisions.

RQ3 has supported a number of translational research projects exploring the biology of salivary gland cancers. Translational research uses laboratory science and samples donated by patients to better understand how cancers behave, with the aim of translating this knowledge into improvements in diagnosis, treatment planning and monitoring.

As our understanding of the differences between individual salivary gland cancers develops, this may also help us better understand which patients are most likely to benefit from particular treatment approaches and support increasingly personalised treatment decisions.

Find out how to donate to the Salivary Gland Cancer Biobank

Learn more about tumour profiling

Read about our research presented at ESMO