The aim of this study was to analyze the relationship between the maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax) of 18F-fluoro-2-deoxyglucose-positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) and the effects of neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), and to identify the possible biological background of this association. Thirty-seven patients with OSCC, who underwent preoperative FDG-PET followed by cancer treatment with neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy, were enrolled in this study. The various histological effects following neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy were compared to the SUVmax in the primary OSCC. These effects were also compared to the immunohistochemical staining score of hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α), glucose membrane transporter (GLUT)-1 and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in the biopsy specimen. Furthermore, we analyzed the chemosensitivity of KB-3-1 cells to cisplatin under hypoxic conditions using the MTT assay. A negative correlation was observed between the SUVmax and the histological effects following neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (p<0.01). The SUVmax was also correlated with the staining score of HIF-1α (p<0.03), but not with GLUT-1 and VEGF. The mean staining score of HIF-1α in the highly effective group was 2.7±1.1, which was significantly lower than that (3.7±0.9) of the poorly effective group (p<0.05). The cell chemosensitivity assay revealed chemoresistant effects under a hypoxic condition in OSCC. In conclusion, the SUVmax is correlated with the effectiveness of neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy in OSCC. Our clinical and experimental analyses further suggest a possible association of the upregulation of HIF-1α with chemoradiosensitivity in SCC cells.

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