Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41807438›Full record

Trial reportNature communications2026

Intraoperative fluorescence-guided fresh frozen sectioning for margin control in head and neck cancer: phase 2 clinical trial.

Thomas S Nijboer, Bas Keizers, Koos Boeve, Daan Roos, Sebastiaan A H J de Visscher, Gyorgy B Halmos, Boudewijn E C Plaat, Henrik K Huizinga, Hendrikus H Boersma, Jan J Doff and 4 more

Registry-linked trialAbstract readClinical Trial, Phase II
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Nature communications, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT05499065 (Real-time Margin Assessment in Head and Neck Cancer - Enhancing Specificity by Combining Fresh Frozen Sectioning With Targeted Fluorescence Imaging), which is not on this map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

NCT05499065 phase2completednot on this map

Real-time Margin Assessment in Head and Neck Cancer - Enhancing Specificity by Combining Fresh Frozen Sectioning With Targeted Fluorescence Imaging

TypeinterventionalSponsorUniversity Medical Center GroningenRan2023 to 2025Enrolled23ConditionsHead and Neck Cancer, Head and Neck Squamous Cell CarcinomaArmsFluorescence guided detection of tumor positive margins, Cetuximab-IRDye800
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

14 authors.

Thomas S Nijboer *Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University of Groningen, University Medical Centre Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0642-451X
Bas Keizers *Department of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, University of Groningen, University Medical Centre Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3798-7702
Koos BoeveDepartment of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University of Groningen, University Medical Centre Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
Daan RoosDepartment of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University of Groningen, University Medical Centre Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0001-1335-5762
Sebastiaan A H J de VisscherDepartment of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University of Groningen, University Medical Centre Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8964-5427
Gyorgy B HalmosDepartment of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University of Groningen, University Medical Centre Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2460-2260
Boudewijn E C PlaatDepartment of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University of Groningen, University Medical Centre Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8631-7727
Henrik K HuizingaDepartment of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, University of Groningen, University Medical Centre Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
Hendrikus H BoersmaDepartment of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, University of Groningen, University Medical Centre Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1892-9830
Jan J DoffDepartment of Pathology and Medical Biology, University of Groningen, University Medical Centre Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1618-2588
Kees-Pieter SchepmanDepartment of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University of Groningen, University Medical Centre Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
Bert van der VegtDepartment of Pathology and Medical Biology, University of Groningen, University Medical Centre Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2613-1506
Max J H WitjesDepartment of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University of Groningen, University Medical Centre Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4135-3246
Floris J VoskuilDepartment of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University of Groningen, University Medical Centre Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands. f.j.voskuil@umcg.nl.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3740-4554

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Tumour-free margins ( >5 mm) in head and neck malignancies improve prognosis, possibly impacting the need for adjuvant treatment. In this phase II prospective, non-randomised trial (NCT05499065), we investigate the use of fluorescence imaging using the tumour targeting fluorescent tracer cetuximab-IRDye800CW combined with fresh frozen sectioning to identify inadequate margins intraoperatively in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma. Primary objectives of our study are intraoperative detection of inadequate margins and additional resections, and feasibility of implementing fluorescence-guided fresh frozen sectioning (FG-FFS) into the clinical workflow. In this study, 10 out of 20 patients show inadequate margins after initial surgery; FG-FFS correctly classifies margin in 19 patients. Additional resections increase tumour-free margin rates from 50% to 85%, where anatomical boundaries limit further improvement in one patient. Intraoperative margin adjustment reduces the need for adjuvant treatment in seven patients. These findings demonstrate that FG-FFS is a reliable and feasible method for intraoperative margin assessment without delaying surgery.

Indexed as

Carcinoma, Squamous CellFrozen SectionsHead and Neck NeoplasmsMargins of ExcisionAgedBenzenesulfonatesCetuximabFemaleFluorescenceFluorescent DyesHumansIndolesMaleMiddle AgedOptical ImagingProspective StudiesBenzenesulfonatesCetuximabFluorescent DyesIndolesIRDye 800CW

Identifiers

PMID41807438
PMCPMC13106736

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.