Major Advancement In Treatment Of Jaw Necrosis

The Head & Neck Cancer Foundation is delighted to announce that Professor Mark McGurk, UCLH, and Co-Founding Trustee of the charity, has been providing a ground-breaking technique, shifting the treatment of jaw necrosis from traditional invasive surgery to a medicine-based treatment, known as PENTOCLO treatment.

Jaw Necrosis is an uncommon but serious condition in which the jawbone struggles to repair and maintain health which can lead to segments of the jawbone dying. Typically, head and neck cancer patients who have undergone vital life-saving radiotherapy treatment are at risk of the complication termed ‘osteo-radio-necrosis’ or simply referred to as ‘ORN’. The need for the radiation treatment to pass through the jaws to reach certain cancer sites leaves them potentially vulnerable to the condition with the risk considered lifelong.

Traditionally the treatment for osteoradionecrosis is surgery. This can include partial removal of the patient’s jaw and may additionally involve rebuilding the jaw using bones from either the leg or arm. The surgery is highly complex and may not lead to cure as the surrounding and remaining jawbone, gums and skin also have compromised healing from radiation treatment. This has meant both surgeons and patients may be reluctant to consider surgery so easily in the event it does not work and worsens the situation. However, the latest approach of PENTOCLO treatment now provides patients a potential option for their treatment that may be less invasive, dependent on their case.

Professor Mark McGurk comments on the ground-breaking PENTOCLO treatment and the huge impact it can have on a patient's life: “We have worked incredibly hard to advance this new treatment and prevent invasive surgeries for our patients. We have developed a medicine-based treatment that aims to boost the patient's blood supply to the jaw, reverse some of the damage done to the skin and mouth, and if the bone in the jaw is dead then push the affected bad bone out. This is an enormous development for us, as it is an alternative to bone removal from the jaw, with limited aesthetical impacts. So far PENTOCLO treatment has an overall healing rate of 56% and as high as 72% in small and early cases which is a very high figure given the alternatives can be destructive.”