Pembrolizumab, combined with platinum-5-FU or as a monotherapy, is the standard treatment of patients with recurrent and/or metastatic (R/M) head and neck squamous-cell carcinoma (HNSCC). This treatment is used exclusively in programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1)-positive patients in Europe, whereas it is used in the USA regardless of PD-L1 status.
However, substantial toxicities, notably those related to cisplatin-based chemotherapy, preclude the use of combination therapy in fragile patients. We investigated the efficacy and tolerance of first-line durvalumab combined with weekly carboplatin/paclitaxel in R/M HNSCC patients who were ineligible for cisplatin.
ESMO Open published a clinical update in Oncology on 09 Apr 2026.
The item focuses on Durvalumab combined with weekly carboplatin/paclitaxel as first-line treatment of patients with recurrent and/or metastatic HNSCC not eligible for cisplatin-based chemotherapies: results of the multicenter prospective study FRAIL-IMMUNE.
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