The project is part of a larger Horizon project called HTx: Next Generation Health Technology Assessment to support patient-centred, society-driven, real-time decision-making on health technology access and reimbursement across Europe, led by the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC). A sub-study has been set up to collect and analyse accurate data on the treatment of patients with head and neck cancer in several European centres. The data collected will form the basis for the validation of the NTCP (Normal Tissue Complication Models) models (comparison between classical irradiation and proton irradiation), which have so far only been validated in the Netherlands. It is of great scientific and health policy interest to investigate whether these models can be generalised to other countries and whether the ‘model-based’ approach to patient selection would benefit society through health economic analyses.

We will include in the analysis all patients with cancer of the oral cavity (C01-C06), pharynx (C09-C13) and larynx (C32) diagnosed between 2018 and 2020 who received radiotherapy. From the Slovenian Cancer Registry, we will extract data on tumour type, diagnosis and treatment. Additional data required for the analysis will be collected by consulting the medical documentation (more detailed information about the treatment and possible side effects). The focus is on the possible side effects of radiation. We will include patients up to an achieved number of 400.