Head & Neck Cancers

Patients with head and neck cancer whose disease is associated with KRAS variant had significantly better progression-free survival and overall survival when treated with the monoclonal antibody cetuximab, according to findings of a retrospective analysis of a randomized trial.

Researchers have created a new classification system for oropharyngeal cancer that is adjusted for the improved prognosis of patients with HPV-positive disease.

The FDA-approved fixed dose of 200 mg of pembrolizumab administered once every 3 weeks yielded durable responses in patients with recurrent and/or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

Barbara A. Burtness, MD, discussed the potential role for immunotherapy in frontline head and neck cancer, as well as the possible benefit of using it in combination with standard treatments, including radiation and chemotherapy.

Barbara Burtness, MD, professor of Medicine, Yale Cancer Center, discusses some of the ongoing trials currently examining the use of immunotherapy to treat patients with head and neck cancer.

Jessica Frakes, MD, assistant member, Department of Radiation Oncology, Moffitt Cancer Center, discusses some of the late toxicities seen in patients with HPV-positive oropharynx squamous cell carcinoma.

Carryn Anderson, MD, assistant professor of Radiation Oncology, University of Iowa, discusses a phase Ib/IIa study of superoxide dismutase mimetic GC4419 to reduce chemoradiotherapy-induced oral mucositis in patients with oral cavitiy or oropharyngeal carcinoma.

Gregory W. Randolph, MD, director, General and Thyroid Surgical Services, Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, Massachusetts General Hospital, discusses how the role of surgery has evolved for patients with thyroid cancer.

Robert L. Ferris, MD, PhD, discusses the findings of the CheckMate-141 study, potential biomarkers for nivolumab (Opdivo), and questions that remain regarding the use of the immunotherapy in squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck.

Joshua M. Bauml, MD, discusses the impact of pembrolizumab's (Keytruda's) success in recurrent or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, the results of the KEYNOTE-055 study, and what he sees on the horizon for the PD-1 inhibitor in this field.

Giselle Carnaby, PhD, professor, ASHA fellow, Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Central Florida, discusses rehabilitation of swallowing after multimodality therapy in patients with head and neck cancer, and why they may be resistant to it.

Joshua M. Bauml, MD, assistant professor of Medicine, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and the Veteran's Administration Medical Center, discusses the differences between pembrolizumab (Keytruda) and cytotoxic chemotherapies.

Brian Nussenbaum, MD, Christy J. and Richard S. Hawes III Professor, Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, director, Head and Neck Surgical Oncology, vice chair of Clinical Affairs, patient safety officer, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, discusses which patients with larynx cancer are eligible for organ preservation surgery.

The FDA has granted an accelerated approval to pembrolizumab as a treatment for patients with recurrent or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma following progression on a platinum-based chemotherapy.

Robert Ferris, MD, PhD, vice chair for Clinical Operations, associate director for Translational Research, and coleader of the Cancer Immunology Program at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute, discusses the impact of the FDA approval of pembrolizumab (Keytruda) for the treatment of patients with head and neck cancer.

Cristina P. Rodriguez, MD, hematology oncologist, University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle, discusses the emerging role of systemic therapy for patients with salivary gland cancer.

Two phase III trials examining afatinib (Gilotrif) in head and neck cancer have been stopped after an independent panel determined the pan-HER inhibitor was unlikely to demonstrate an efficacy benefit over placebo.

Treatment with vemurafenib (Zelboraf) demonstrated an objective response rate of up to 38.5% for patients with radioactive iodine-refractory BRAF V600E-mutant papillary thyroid cancer who were multikinase inhibitor-naive.

After a decade of advances in the treatment of differentiated thyroid cancer, researchers are looking for ways to improve outcomes through a more personalized approach that includes risk-based strategies and appropriate use of molecular testing.

The FDA has granted a priority review designation to nivolumab as a treatment for patients with previously treated metastatic or recurrent squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck.

The progression-free survival benefit with lenvatinib over placebo in patients with radioactive iodine–refractory differentiated thyroid cancer was sustained in an updated analysis of the phase III SELECT trial.

Although paradigms for treating older patients with head and neck cancer are not well defined, advancements in targeted and immunotherapies and less toxic radiation regimens suggest that physicians can aim for a more individualized approach to treating this patient population.

Marcia S. Brose, MD, PhD, sheds light on the biomarker assessment of the DECISION trial and the overall developments with biomarker research in the field of differentiated thyroid cancer.

Pembrolizumab (Keytruda) demonstrated promising antitumor activity with durable responses in patients with advanced thyroid cancer.

Marcia S. Brose, MD, PhD, discusses the updated SELECT findings, how practitioners are treating patients with lenvatinib, how its use compares with sorafenib, and the challenges that still exist with both therapies for patients with thyroid cancer.

PD-L2 and the IFN-γ 6-gene signature may offer options beyond PD-L1 to predict response to pembrolizumab (Keytruda) in patients with recurrent or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.