Adding chemotherapy to immunotherapy before surgery reduced tumor size more effectively than immunotherapy alone in patients with head and neck cancers, according to a study published Aug. 13 in JAMA Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery.
Researchers at New York City-based Mount Sinai reviewed records of 86 adults with resectable head and neck cancer who received at least one cycle of neoadjuvant immunotherapy or chemo-immunotherapy before surgery between July 2024 and March 2026.
- Fifty-eight patients received chemotherapy plus immunotherapy before surgery, while 28 received immunotherapy alone.
- Among patients who received the combination therapy, 67% had no cancer or minimal cancer remaining in their tumor at the time of surgery.
Only one of the 28 patients who received immunotherapy alone saw the same result. - “We now need to determine whether these more effective preoperative responses lead to better long-term survival rates as well as lower recurrence rates,” study authors said in an Aug. 13 news release from Mount Sinai.
Read the full study here.
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