Keywords

Anatomic Variation; Anatomy; Autophagy; Chemoradiotherapy; Chemotherapy resistance; Free Tissue Flaps; Head and Neck Neoplasms; Mandibular Reconstruction; Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; Microsurgery; Neck Dissection; Oncology; Organoids; Primary Cell Culture; Receptors, Interleukin-6; Reconstructive Surgical Procedures; Spheroids, Cellular; Translational Medical Research

Research group(s)

• Basic Oncology Research in Head and Neck Cancer
  Members:
  Gregor Heiduschka
  Victoria Stanek
  Sam Augustine Kandathil
• Bio-/Implantlab
  Head: Lena Hirtler
  Research Area: The members of this research group address a wide range of anatomical and clinical-morphological questions. By establishing the "Medical Bio-/Implantbank Vienna", it is possible to analyse the interaction between implants and surrounding tissue on a large scale. Apart from stand-alone projects, the research group is characterized by collaborations with a variety of different departments to tackle current and relevant issues in clinical practice.
  Members:
  Sam Augustine Kandathil
  Lena Hirtler

Research interests

• Translational research
• patient-derived head and neck sqamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) culture (cultivating and engineering HNSCC-organoids and spheroids)
• patient-derived xenografts (PDX)
• organoid-derived grafts (ODX)
• 4-NQO mouse model

• Tumor microenvironment (TME)
• influence of TME on cancer chemo- and radioresistance

• Autophagy
• role of autophagy in cancer development and response to chemo- and radiotherapy

• Extracellular matrix (ECM)
• creating scaffolds and hydrogels derived from animals and humans for in vitro applications
• influence of ECM on HNSCC tumor progression and invasion

• Thin section histology
• currently establishing Methylmethacrylat-based histology to analyse implant-tissue-interactions