Div. of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery

Professor　 TOMIHARA Kei

info-omfs@dent.niigata-u.ac.jp, tomihara@dent.niigata-u.ac.jp

Our Education

　Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
　Oral Medicine and Stomatology

Our Research

OSCC is the most common malignancy of the head and neck, and its incidence is predicted to increase by up to 40% worldwide by 2040. Major risk factors for OSCC include smoking, alcohol consumption, human papillomavirus infection, and chewing tobacco, which results in a particularly high incidence of OSCC in Asian countries where the practice is common.
Although recent advances in treatment have significantly improved the outcomes for patients with oral cancer, devising treatment strategies remains problematic in cases of high-grade tumors that are refractory to conventional therapies. Therefore, novel treatment strategies are needed. Cancer immunotherapy with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) and molecular targeting strategies against epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) using monoclonal antibodies have shown beneficial results. This is particularly true for advanced or recurrent cases in which other therapies are no longer effective in many types of cancer, including oral cancer. Notably, ICIs are expected to exert antitumor effects in recurrent and/or metastatic cancers. However, the clinical efficacy of ICIs remains low, and novel drugs that improve their efficacy are required.
Our study group is conducting several research projects to develop a novel treatment strategy for oral cancer, including basic tumor immunology research using a mouse model of oral cancer and clinicopathological research using clinical samples from patients with oral cancer.

1. Novel strategy of immunotherapy for targeting immune regulatory cells in oral cancer-bearing hosts
2. Regulatory mechanism of immunosenescence in the antitumor immune response in oral cancer
3. Immunomodulatory effects of mTOR inhibition on oral cancer using both human OSCC cell lines and an oral cancer mouse model
4. Role of PAK4 signaling in the progression of oral cancer and the immunomodulatory effect of PAK4 inhibition in both human OSCC cell lines and murine OSCC models
5. Effect of targeting CD36-mediated lipid metabolism in the antitumor immune responses in oral cancer
6. Collaboratory research for bioinformatics in the diagnosis and treatment of oral cancer

Clinical Fields

Oral Oncology
Cleft lip and palate
Orthognathic surgery
Oral and maxillofacial implants
Temporomandibular disorderss
Oral and maxillofacial trauma
Other oral surgical and medical treatments

Our Website

https://www.dent.niigata-u.ac.jp/surgery2/

Research Figures

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• Departments/Faculty
  • Div. of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases
  • Div. of Biomimetics
  • Div. of Preventive Dentistry
  • Div. of Cariology Operative Dentistry and Endodontics
  • Div. of Pediatric Dentistry
  • Div. of Bio-Prosthdontics
  • Div. of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
  • Div. of Dental Clinical Education
  • Div. of Oral Anatomy
  • Div. of Oral Physiology
  • Div. of Oral Biochemistry
  • Div. of Periodontology
  • Div. of Orthodontics
  • Div. of Dysphagia Rehabilitation
  • Div. of Anatomy and Cell Biology of the Hard Tissue
  • Div. of Oral Pathology
  • Div. of Dental Pharmacology
  • Div. of Comprehensive Prosthodontics
  • Div. of Reconstructive Surgery for Oral and Maxillofacial Region
  • Div. of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology
  • Div. of Dental Anesthesiology
  • Department of Oral Health and Welfare
  • Center for Advanced Oral Science
  • Div. of Dental Clinical Education
    General Dentistry and Clinical Education Unit
  • Oral Implant and Temporomandibular Joint Clinic