Head & Neck Cancers | Specialty

The OncLive Head and Neck Cancer condition center page is a comprehensive resource for clinical news and expert insights on treatment for patients with head and neck cancer. This page features news articles, interviews in written and video format, and podcasts that focus on unmet needs, treatment advances, and ongoing research within head and neck cancer.

Sosa Talks Risk Factors, Rising Incidence, and Controversies in Thyroid Cancer

September 2nd 2021

Dr. Sosa discusses the rise in thyroid cancer cases, patient risk factors, the financial challenges associated with long-term treatment and testing, and future research directions in the field.

Rolling Submission of BLA to FDA Completed for Toripalimab Plus Chemotherapy in Metastatic Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma

September 1st 2021

The rolling submission of a biologics license application to support the approval of both toripalimab plus gemcitabine- and cisplatin-based chemotherapy as a first-line treatment for patients with advanced recurrent or metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma, as well as toripalimab monotherapy for the second-line or beyond treatment of patients with recurrent or metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma after platinum-based chemotherapy has been completed.

Fox Chase’s Camille Ragin Awarded SPORE Grant to Examine Racial Differences in Risk for Head and Neck Cancer Patients

August 30th 2021

Fox Chase Cancer Center researcher Camille Ragin, PhD, MPH, was recently awarded a Specialized Program of Research Excellence grant of $50,000 for a pilot project examining differences in risk and disease course for Black versus white head and neck cancer patients.

FDA Grants Breakthrough Therapy Designation for Toripalimab for Frontline Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma

August 12th 2021

The FDA has granted a breakthrough therapy designation to toripalimab for single-agent use in combination with gemcitabine and cisplatin in the frontline treatment of patients with recurrent or metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

FDA Grants Priority Review to Cabozantinib for Radioiodine-Refractory Differentiated Thyroid Cancer

August 5th 2021

The FDA has granted a priority review designation to a supplemental new drug application for cabozantinib for the treatment of patients with differentiated thyroid cancer who have progressed after previous therapy and who are radioactive iodine refractory.

Managing Adverse Events With Tipifarnib

July 19th 2021

Recommendations for mitigating and managing treatment-related adverse events associated with tipifarnib.

Future Directions in HRAS-Mutated Head and Neck Cancer

July 19th 2021

Glenn J. Hanna, MD, and Nabil F. Saba, MD, FACP, highlight potential new therapies for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma in various patient populations.

Pivotal AIM-HN Clinical Trial of Tipifarnib in HNSCC

July 19th 2021

Glenn J. Hanna, MD, and Nabil F. Saba, MD, FACP, discuss the design and potential clinical implications of the AIM-HN trial of tipifarnib in head and neck cancers.

Tipifarnib in HRAS-Mutated HNSCC

July 19th 2021

Potential implications for treating patients with HRAS-mutated head and neck cancer with tipifarnib, based on results demonstrated by the RUN-HN study.

Molecular Testing in HNSCC

July 19th 2021

Guidance for incorporating initial and repeat molecular testing in head and neck cancers into clinical practice.

The Evolving Treatment Landscape of HNSCC

July 19th 2021

A brief overview of treatment advances for HRAS-mutated head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

Nivolumab/Ipilimumab Misses OS End Points in Frontline Head and Neck Cancer, But Shows Trend Toward Benefit in Subset

July 16th 2021

Nivolumab plus ipilimumab did not significantly improve overall survival over the EXTREME regimen in the frontline treatment of patients with recurrent or metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck, missing the primary end points of the phase 3 CheckMate-651 trial.

Belapectin/Pembrolizumab Shows Early Activity, Tolerability in Metastatic Melanoma & Head and Neck Cancer

July 11th 2021

The combination of belapectin plus pembrolizumab has demonstrated early potential for disease control with acceptable tolerability in patients with metastatic melanoma and head and neck cancer.

Sherman Spotlights Advances With RET Inhibitors in Medullary Thyroid Cancer

July 1st 2021

Dr. Sherman discusses the incidence of RET fusions in medullary thyroid cancer and the current clinical landscape of RET inhibitors in the field.

Leukocyte Interleukin Plus SOC, Without Chemo, Provides 5-Year OS Benefit of 14.1% in Head and Neck Cancer

June 29th 2021

The immunotherapy Leukocyte interleukin followed by surgery and radiotherapy, without chemotherapy, significantly improved overall survival compared with standard of care alone in the treatment of patients with advanced primary squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck.

Dr. Burtness on the Efficacy of Checkpoint Inhibitors in Head & Neck Cancer

June 29th 2021

Barbara Burtness, MD, discusses the efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors in the treatment of patients with head and neck cancer.

Selpercatinib Elicits Encouraging Antitumor Activity in Pediatric RET-Altered Solid Tumors

June 6th 2021

Selpercatinib demonstrated evidence of preliminary efficacy and safety in pediatric patients with advanced RET-altered solid tumors.

Frontline Toripalimab Plus Gemcitabine/Cisplatin Significantly Improves PFS in Recurrent or Metastatic Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma

June 3rd 2021

The addition of the immunotherapy agent toripalimab to gemcitabine plus cisplatin demonstrated superior progression-free survival compared with chemotherapy alone in the frontline treatment of patients with recurrent or metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma, according to data from the phase 3 JUPITER-02 trial.

Innovation Fuels Breakthroughs for Rare Cancers

June 2nd 2021

Innovative strategies are vital for patients diagnosed with rare cancers, who are frequently at a disadvantage compared with those who have more common malignancies, experts say.

Dr. Owonikoko on the Efficacy of Selpercatinib in Pre-Treated and Untreated RET+ Thyroid Cancer

May 26th 2021

Taofeek Owonikoko MD, PhD, MSCR, discusses the efficacy of selpercatinib in pre-treated and treatment-naive patients with RET fusion–positive medullary thyroid cancer.