Neural landscape is associated with functional outcomes in irradiated patients with oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma

Abstract

The incidence of human papilloma virus–mediated oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) has increased over the past 40 years, particularly among young individuals with a favorable prognosis; however, current therapy often leads to unfortunate side effects, such as dysphagia. Despite the emphasis on dysphagia in previous studies, there is an important research gap in understanding the correlation between neuronal changes and patient-reported and functional outcomes in patients with OPSCC. To address this issue, we examined pathologic tissue samples from patients with OPSCC using multiplex immunofluorescence staining and machine learning to correlate tumor-associated neuronal changes with prospectively collected patient-reported and functional outcomes. We found that tumor enrichment of adrenergic (TH⁺) and CGRP⁺ sensory–afferent nerves correlated with poorer swallowing outcomes. Functional electromyography recordings showed correlations between growing (GAP43⁺) and immature cholinergic (ChAT⁺DCX⁺) nerves and denervation patterns in survivors of OPSCC. A murine model of radiation-induced dysphagia further confirmed that immature cholinergic and CGRP⁺ nerves were correlated with impaired swallowing. Preclinical interventional studies also supported the independent contributions of CGRP⁺ and cholinergic (ChAT⁺) nerves to dysphagia in treated mouse models of OPSCC. Our results suggest that CGRP⁺ and ChAT⁺ neuronal signaling play distinct roles in tumor- and radiation-induced dysphagia in OPSCC and offer a comprehensive dataset on the neural landscape of OPSCC. These insights may guide early interventions for swallow preservation and the repurposing of neurology-related drugs, such as CGRP blockers, in clinical oncology and survivorship.