Dr. Ferris on Significance of CheckMate-141 Trial for Head and Neck Cancer

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 significance of the phase III CheckMate-141 trial, which found that treatment with single-agent nivolumab (Opdivo) reduced the risk of death by 30% and doubled 1-year overall survival (OS) rates compared with investigator's choice of therapy for patients with recurrent or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (SCCHN).

Further analyses revealed distinct populations of patients who responded better to nivolumab monotherapy, specifically those with PD-L1-positive and HPV-positive SCCHN. In these groups, the reduction in the risk of death with nivolumab was near 50% versus investigator's choice of therapy.

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