Head & Neck Cancers

Although surgery and radiotherapy are standard treatment modalities for grade T1/T2 oral cavity cancer, both approaches have well-documented limitations, including their association with adverse effects that lower quality of life for patients.

The presence of metastatic lymph nodes was directly correlated with poorer survival in patients with oral cancer, according to findings published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

The UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has issued guidelines recommending against nivolumab (Opdivo), lenvatinib (Lenvima), and sorafenib (Nexavar).

Kathryn A. Gold, MD, medical oncologist, associate professor of medicine, UC San Diego Heath, discusses the current state of human papilloma virus (HPV)-related head and neck cancer.

Dan Zandberg, MD, assistant professor of medicine, the University of Maryland School of Medicine, discusses biomarker development in patients with head and neck cancer.

Dan Zandberg, MD, assistant professor of medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine, discusses the role of immunotherapy in head and neck cancer.

Dan Zandberg, MD, assistant professor of Medicine, the University of Maryland Medical Center, discusses the role of durvalumab (Imfinzi) in patients with metastatic head and neck cancer.

The incidence of mouth and throat cancer is on the rise due to transmission of the human papilloma virus, but physicians at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center have managed to significantly reduce the intensity of treatment and improve quality of life for these patients.

Ezra Cohen, MD, associate director, Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego, discusses the phase III KEYNOTE-040 trial in head and neck cancer.

Dan Zandberg, MD, assistant professor, medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine, discusses the HAWK trial of durvalumab (Imfinzi) in patients with recurrent or metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck.

Barbara A. Burtness, MD, discusses the current role of immunotherapy in head and neck cancer and potential combination regimens on the horizon.

Pembrolizumab (Keytruda) reduced the risk of death compared with standard of care therapy in patients with relapsed/metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, but the difference fell just shy of statistical significance.

High-intensity local radiation combined with systemic therapy improved overall survival compared with systemic therapy alone in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

Two doses of nivolumab given about 1 month prior to surgery are well tolerated and reduces tumor size in about half of patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck.

18Fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography/computed tomography scanning reliably detected residual neck disease in newly diagnosed patients with locoregionally advanced head-and-neck squamous cell carcinoma.

Results from an analysis of 3D tumor volume measurements shows papillary thyroid cancers ≤1.5 cm grew slowly during a period of active surveillance, suggesting that surgery may not be necessary for all patients.

Cabozantinib (Cabometyx) demonstrated durable activity in patients with radioiodine-refractory differentiated thyroid cancer who progressed on VEGFR-targeted therapy.

Pembrolizumab (Keytruda) induced an overall response rate of 25.9% and was well tolerated in patients with PD-L1–positive recurrent or metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Robert Siegel, MD, chair, professor of medicine, director, Division of Hematology/Oncology, George Washington University, discusses induction therapy for head and neck cancer.

Robert Siegel, MD, chair, professor of medicine, director, Division of Hematology/Oncology, George Washington University, discusses the benefits of chemotherapy and transoral surgery for patients with head and neck cancer.

Robert Siegel, MD, chair, professor of medicine, director, Division of Hematology/Oncology, George Washington University, discusses a study of induction chemotherapy and transoral surgery in patients with oropharyngeal cancer.

Robert Siegel, MD, chair, professor of medicine, director, Division of Hematology/Oncology, George Washington University, discusses the da Vinci robotic-assisted surgery technique in head and neck cancer.

Joshua Bauml, MD, assistant professor, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, discusses an unmet need for patients with head and neck cancer.

Hong Kong researchers were able to detect nasopharyngeal carcinoma significantly earlier by screening for circulating cell-free Epstein-Barr virus DNA.

Jared Weiss, MD, assistant professor, UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, discusses prevention in head and neck cancer.