Strikingly, three different G6PD inhibitors, including dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) 53, trans-polydatin 54, and 6-aminonicotinamide (6-AN) 55 were found to cause synthetic lethality in HNSCC cells when combined with cisplatin (Figure 6H, Figure S17), while co-treatment with the TKT inhibitor (oxythiamine chloride hydrochloride) and cisplatin showed no synergistic cytotoxicity (data not shown). This evidence concerns the gene TKT and head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.