FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 20 YEARS, A NEW TREATMENT SHOWS BENEFIT IN HIGHT-RISK HEAD AND NECK CANCER
Head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC) – cancers linked to tobacco, alcohol, or human papillomavirus (HPV) – account for around 90% of all head and neck cancers. These malignancies arise in the mucous membranes of the mouth, pharynx or larynx. Even when operable, some of these tumours carry a high risk of recurrence after surgery. Two key high-risk factors have been identified: (1) when the tumour has spread beyond the membrane of the cervical lymph nodes; and (2) when complete microscopic resection could not be achieved.
Patients with high-risk resected head and neck squamous cell carcinoma have seen no major therapeutic advances since 2004, when the current standard of care was established. The results of the European phase III trial NIVOPOSTOP (GORTEC 2018-01), presented in the plenary session at the ASCO congress, mark a turning point for these patients with an otherwise poor prognosis. Sponsored by GORTEC, the French cooperative research group dedicated to head and neck cancers, the study demonstrates the benefit of adding immunotherapy after surgery in this setting. In the long term, it paves the way for a new global standard of care.
The NIVOPOSTOP trial was conducted between 2018 and 2024 across six countries and enrolled 680 patients under the age of 75 who had undergone surgery for a locally advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity, oropharynx, hypopharynx or larynx, and presented with at least one high-risk feature for recurrence.
After a median follow-up of over 30 months, the three-year disease-free survival rate increased from 52.5% with standard treatment to 63.1% with the addition of immunotherapy. This is the first major advance in this clinical setting in more than two decades,” says Dr Yungan Tao, last author of the NIVOPOSTOP study
