Intratumor Cisplatin Injection and Interstitial Nd:Yag Laser Treatment: A New Combined Therapy for Squamous Cell Carcinoma QUINTEN

pared with the I]-actin controls. The HNSCC cell lines transfected with antisense to cyclin D1 were plated in serum-free media and effects on cellular proliferation were evaluated by thymidine incorporation assays. By 72 hours of incubation there was a greater than 30% reduction in proliferation of transfected cells compared with control cells (nontransfected cells grown in serum-free media). Amplification studies revealed little to no amplification of cyclin D1 or G in the HNSCC tumor samples, but preliminary Northern blots reveal the possible overexpression of cyclin D1 in two of four HNSCC cell lines tested. Further Northern blot analysis of the primary tumors are planned to determine the incidence of overexpression of these cyclins. The behavior of the cells transfected with the cyclin antisense plasmid may help to elucidate the mechanism behind the development and progression of HNSCC. Better understanding of the roles of cyclin D1 and G in the regulation of cellular growth and proliferation will, we hope, lead to more efficacious modes of therapy for HNSCC. (Supported by funds from the Resident Research Grant of the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Foundation [grant No. H940510].)