Pathologic Treatment Effect and Survival in HPV-Negative HNSCC Following Neoadjuvant Nivolumab

In patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, are survival outcomes improved when there is pathologic response following neoadjuvant treatment with nivolumab?In this pooled analysis of 79 patients from 2 clinical trials, 3-year disease-free and overall survival for pathologic responders with human papillomavirus (HPV)–negative disease was improved compared with low responders or nonresponders.Findings from this work suggest that patients who receive neoadjuvant immunotherapy and mount a significant pathologic response, defined as a treatment effect threshold using immunologic criteria, may have a survival advantage; pathologic treatment effect may be a useful surrogate marker of survival in patients with HPV-negative head and neck squamous cell carcinoma treated with neoadjuvant immunotherapy.

Corresponding Authors: Jennifer M. Johnson, MD, PhD, Department of Medical Oncology, Thomas Jefferson University, 1101 Chestnut St, 14th Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19107 (jennifer.johnson@jefferson.edu); Adam J. Luginbuhl, MD, Department of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery, Thomas Jefferson University, 925 Chestnut St, 6th Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19107 (adam.luginbuhl@jefferson.edu).

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