Head & Neck Cancers

Ezra Cohen, MD, discusses the future role of immunotherapy in the treatment of patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

Barbara Burtness, MD, professor of medicine, Yale Cancer Center, discusses findings from the KEYNOTE-048 in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC).

Cisplatin plus radiotherapy results in better overall survival and the same rate of all-grade toxicity compared with cetuximab plus radiotherapy in patients with HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancer.

Frontline pembrolizumab monotherapy showed an improvement in overall survival and duration of response versus standard therapy in patients with PD-L1–positive recurrent or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma; however, there was not a similar improvement in progression-free survival or overall response rate with the PD-1 inhibitor.

Genetically engineered T-cells targeting a common tumor antigen appeared safe and demonstrated some evidence of antitumor activity in a first-in-human clinical evaluation.

The FDA has granted LOXO-292 a breakthrough therapy designation for the treatment of patients with advanced RET fusion–positive thyroid cancer who require systemic therapy, have progressed on prior treatment, and have no other acceptable alternative treatment options.

Robert Ferris, MD, PhD, vice chair for Clinical Operations, associate director for Translational Research, and co-leader of the Cancer Immunology Program at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute discusses the significance of the CheckMate-041 trial for patients with head and neck cancer.

Missak Haigentz, MD, chief of Hematology and Oncology at Morristown Medical Center, medical director of Atlantic Hematology and Oncology for Atlantic Medical Group at the Carol G. Simon Cancer Center, discusses the impact that immunotherapy has had on the treatment of patients with head and neck cancer.

Farah Succaria, MD, postdoctoral fellow, Johns Hopkins Medicine, discusses targetable immune checkpoints in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

The FDA has granted LOXO-292 a breakthrough therapy designation for the treatment of patients with RET fusion–positive non–small cell lung cancer or RET-mutant medullary thyroid cancer.

In recent years, tyrosine kinase inhibitors that specifically target RET have entered the pipeline. Although none have yet received FDA approval, the promise of these agents has spurred interest in diagnostic assays.

Alexander E. Drilon, MD, discusses the data with LOXO-292 thus far and the promise for this agent in patients with RET alterations.