Table 1.
Clinicopathologic characterization of the HNSCC patients included in this study
| Characteristics | Patients (n = 39) | Healthy controls (n = 10) |
|---|---|---|
| Sex | ||
| Male | 34 | 3 |
| Female | 5 | 7 |
| Age | ||
| Range | 50–77 | 32–59 |
| Median | 60 | 51 |
| Tumor site | ||
| Oral cavity | 12 | — |
| Larynx | 27 | |
| Tumor differentiation | ||
| Well | 8 | — |
| Moderate | 19 | |
| Poor | 12 | |
| Tumor stage | ||
| T1 | 0 | — |
| T2 | 0 | |
| T3 | 27 | |
| T4 | 12 | |
| Nodal status | ||
| N0 | 18 | |
| N1 | 9 | |
| N2 | 11 | — |
| N3 | 1 | |
| Distant metastases | ||
| M0 | 36 | — |
| M1 | 3 | |
| Bacteria and fungi recovered from the tumor* | ||
| Bacteria | 36 | — |
| Fungi | 6 | |
NOTE: All HNSCC patients included in this study underwent surgery; none received radiotherapy or chemotherapy before surgery for tumor removal.
*
At the time of surgery, samples for bacterial/fungal cultures were obtained from tumor tissues.