Aim: We report real-world time on treatment (rwToT) with immuno-oncology (I-O) and other systemic therapies in second-line recurrent or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (R/M HNSCC) previously treated with platinum therapies. Materials & methods: Adult patients receiving first-line platinum therapy for R/M HNSCC between January 2017 and December 2018 and a second-line therapy were selected from a US electronic medical record database. Results: In our study sample of 619 R/M HNSCC patients, second-line treatments primarily included I-O therapies (71%) and resulted in median rwToT of 2.8 months and 12-month on-treatment rate of 19.3%. For other second-line therapies, median rwToT and 12-month on-treatment rate was 1.9 months and 1.3%, respectively. Conclusion: Use of second-line I-O therapies was common and resulted in rwToT consistent with R/M HNSCC clinical trials.
Keywords: Kaplan–Meier estimate; antibodies; antineoplastic agents; head and neck squamous-cell carcinoma; immunological; patient outcomes; real-world observational study; treatment patterns.
Lay abstract Head and neck cancer include tumors that develops in the mouth, throat, nose, salivary glands, oral cancers or other areas of the head and neck. When this cancer returns or spreads to another part of the body, systemic chemotherapies are often used with the goal of prolonging survival. Immunotherapy has emerged as a new approach to treat head and neck cancer by using the body’s own immune system to kill cancer cells. The purpose of this study was to better understand the use of immunotherapies in patients with head and neck cancer after the cancer has returned or spread to another part of the body. The study showed that immunotherapies were commonly used and resulted in fewer treatment discontinuations in comparison to other systemic chemotherapies. These results support the use of immunotherapies in this patient population.