Researchers developed a diagnostic test based on the LIMA1-alpha protein to distinguish patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma who can be cured with surgery alone, without the need for radiation or chemotherapy.

Researchers from the University of Turku and Turku University Hospital, Finland, led by Docent Sami Ventelä and Professor Jukka Westermarck, have identified a novel diagnostic tool that can revolutionize the treatment guidance of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

Their newly published study introduces an easy-to-use immunohistochemical assay for detecting the LIMA1-alpha protein, which reliably predicts whether patients can be cured with surgery alone—avoiding the need for harmful oncological treatments.

New hope for patients with head and neck cancer.

https://health.ucdavis.edu/news/headlines/new-hope-for-patients-with-head-and-neck-cancer/2025/07

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-06-oncologists-ai-experts-combine-images.html

🧪 New Research: Pembrolizumab May Help Some Head and Neck Cancer Patients Live Longer 🧪

A major new study has looked at whether adding a drug called pembrolizumab to the usual treatment for head and neck cancer can help people live longer without the cancer coming back.

Here’s what happened in the study:

• Over 700 people with locally advanced head and neck squamous cell cancer (HNSCC) took part.

• Everyone had surgery and radiation (sometimes with chemotherapy), which is the usual treatment.

• Half of the people also got pembrolizumab before and after surgery. The other half did not.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-025-03500-y

Hundreds of thousands of people with advanced head and neck cancer could live longer without their cancer returning thanks to an immunotherapy drug, a clinical trial suggests.

This is the first sign of a breakthrough for patients with this difficult-to-treat cancer for 20 years, say scientists behind the research.

Laura Marston, 45, from Derbyshire, says she is "amazed she's still here" after being given "dire" chances of survival following a diagnosis of advanced tongue cancer six years ago.

She received the immunotherapy before and after surgery, which researchers say helps the body learn to attack the cancer if it returns.

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Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) cells exhibit a high dependency on glutamine metabolism, making it an attractive target. Despite the well-established link between glutamine reliance and tumor progression, the specific role of glutamine transporters in HNSCC remains poorly understood. The alanine-serine-cysteine transporter 2 (ASCT2), a key glutamine transporter, is overexpressed in HNSCC, and its silencing has been shown to reduce intracellular glutamine and glutathione levels, inhibiting tumor growth. These facts suggest that targeting ASCT2-mediated glutamine uptake could offer a promising therapeutic strategy for HNSCC. But no clinically approved drugs directly target ASCT2, and challenges such as the limited stability of antisense oligonucleotides persist. In this study we evaluated the correlation between ASCT2-mediate glutamine metabolism and its impact on HNSCC patients. We established a virtual screening method followed by cytotoxic assays to identify small molecules that specifically target ASCT2. Among the top 15 candidates, we identified yuanhuacine (YC) as the most potent antitumor compound with IC₅₀ values of 1.43, 6.62, and 6.46 μM against HN6, CAL33, and SCC7 cells, respectively. We demonstrated that YC (0.3–5 μM) dose-dependently induced ASCT2 degradation by recruiting the E3 ubiquitin ligase RNF5, inhibiting glutamine uptake in HN6 cells. This disruption led to mitochondrial dysfunction and enhanced the therapeutic efficacy of YC. Our results highlight YC as a promising regulator of ASCT2-mediated glutamine metabolism in HNSCC.

A new liquid biopsy blood test could help detect cases of human papillomavirus (HPV)-associated head and neck cancers with significantly higher accuracy than currently used methods, including before patients develop symptoms, according to new Mass General Brigham research.

The researchers at Mass Eye and Ear, a member of the Mass General Brigham healthcare system, found that the blood-based diagnostic test they developed called HPV-DeepSeek achieved 99% sensitivity and 99% specificity for diagnosing cancer at the time of first clinical presentation, including for the very earliest stages of disease. This higher accuracy significantly outperforms current standard-of-care methods, including other commercially available liquid biopsy assays. The study is published in Clinical Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.

https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/news/newsroom/news-releases/2025/05/johns-hopkins-medicine-sparks-hope-confidence-for-woman-with-rare-head-and-neck-cancer

Can stress affect cancer?

While ancient Greek doctors once thought depression could cause cancer, modern researchers mostly reject the idea of a "cancer-prone personality." But the connection between stress and cancer is still being explored.

More than 100 studies have found links between depression, chronic stress, and worse cancer outcomes — though the science isn’t always clear-cut.

Recent research shows that stress can directly affect how tumors grow, and blocking stress signals in the body might even improve outcomes for people with cancer.

The takeaway? Mental well-being matters — especially for those living with cancer.

Thanks to successful public health campaigns that raised awareness and shifted the landscape of societal norms around smoking, tobacco-related cancers of the head and neck have dramatically declined. However, the American Cancer Society (ACS) reports a troubling new trend. Head and neck cancers are on the rise after years of decline due to the human papillomavirus (HPV).

“HPV explains the precipitous rise in the number of head and neck cancers independent of smoking or heavy drinking, as it has been associated in years past. HPV-driven oropharynx cancer is the new face of head and neck cancer. It's one of the few cancers that are actually still increasing in incidence,” reports Holsinger.

According to the ACS, deaths from HPV-associated cancers of the tongue, tonsil, and oropharynx are increasing by about 2% annually.

Key Takeaways

• Nivolumab plus ipilimumab or relatlimab nearly doubled response rates compared to nivolumab alone in head and neck cancer.

• Patients with major pathologic responses had better disease-free and overall survival at 3 years.

• Different combination therapies had different effects on T-cell dynamics, suggesting potential for treatment personalization.

Researchers at Tel Aviv University have demonstrated that CRISPR gene editing can effectively eliminate head and neck tumours by directly injecting lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) containing CRISPR components into the tumours. In a study published in Advanced Science, they reported that 50% of treated tumours vanished after 84 days, marking a significant advance in precision cancer therapy. Read more here…https://www.insideprecisionmedicine.com/topics/oncology/crispr-therapy-elim

This procedure underscores Cedars-Sinai's commitment to staying at the forefront of medical innovation and adopting leading-edge surgical techniques that positively enhance patient care and improve outcomes.

New clinical trial seeks alternatives for head and neck cancer patients unable to use cisplatin

The randomized phase 3 NIVOPOSTOP GORTEC 2018-01 trial (NCT03576417) demonstrated that nivolumab (Opdivo) significantly improved disease-free survival (DFS) in resected patients with locally advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (LA-SCCHN) at high risk of relapse.¹

The study is evaluating the addition of nivolumab to standard-of care (SOC) radiotherapy and cisplatin after surgery vs SOC radiotherapy and cisplatin alone in patients with LA-SCCHN. At a predetermined number of DFS events, investigators observed a statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvement in DFS for patients receiving nivolumab.

At Mayo Clinic, head and neck specialists such as Dr. Jujie Zhao are steadfast in their shared commitment to the patient's best interest. They are dedicated to providing comprehensive care that addresses all aspects of a patient's treatment and supportive needs.

A UCLH patient has received an innovative treatment for radiotherapy-induced dry mouth, an irreversible serious adverse effect of head and neck cancer radiotherapy that causes permanent impairment of talking and eating.

Researchers hope that the gene therapy, called AAV2-hAQP1, will significantly improve the lives of patients who survived oral and oropharyngeal cancer but developed persistent dry mouth (known as xerostomia) from irreversible radiation damage to the salivary glands.

While there has been prior research on coffee and tea consumption and reduced risk of cancer, this study highlighted their varying effects with different sub-sites of head and neck cancer, including the observation that even decaffeinated coffee had some positive impact. Coffee and tea habits are fairly complex, and these findings support the need for more data and further studies around the impact that coffee and tea can have on reducing cancer risk."

Yuan-Chin Amy Lee, PhD, senior author of Huntsman Cancer Institute and the University of Utah School of Medicine