{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,15]],"date-time":"2026-10-15T19:33:01Z","timestamp":1792092781144,"version":"4.4.0"},"reference-count":82,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"2","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,19]],"date-time":"2026-01-19T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1768780800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Pomeranian Medical University in Szczecin, Poland"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["IJMS"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Head and neck cancer (HNC) encompasses tumors located within the oral cavity, sinonasal cavity, pharynx, and larynx. It is the sixth most common cancer worldwide. Current treatment methods in HNC patients involve radical surgery, radical radiotherapy, and concomitant chemoradiotherapy, along with adjuvant and induction therapies. Accumulating trials examine the role of immunotherapy in patients with HNC. The results of the CheckMate-141 and KEYNOTE-048 trials demonstrated the benefits of using immunotherapy in patients with metastatic or recurrent HNC. Subsequently, numerous other immunotherapy-based protocols have been evaluated. Then, KEYNOTE-689 successfully implemented immunotherapy in patients with locally advanced disease. This review aims to comprehensively present the landscape of immunotherapy opportunities in patients with HNC. It summarizes completed key clinical trials that led to the approval of immunotherapy in HNC and presents currently performed trials with highly expected results. Furthermore, it discusses methods to improve immunotherapy outcomes in the cohort of HNC patients, describes the current role of immunotherapy in HNC, and presents future perspectives of this type of treatment.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/ijms27020987","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,20]],"date-time":"2026-01-20T13:02:07Z","timestamp":1768914127000},"page":"987","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":3,"title":["Immunotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer\u2014Where Are We Now and Where Are We Headed?"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"27","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4820-0629","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Rafa\u0142","family":"Becht","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Clinical Oncology, Chemotherapy and Cancer Immunotherapy, Pomeranian University of Medicine, 71-252 Szczecin, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8227-6753","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Kajetan","family":"Kie\u0142bowski","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Clinical Oncology, Chemotherapy and Cancer Immunotherapy, Pomeranian University of Medicine, 71-252 Szczecin, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Paulina","family":"\u017bukowska","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Clinical Oncology, Chemotherapy and Cancer Immunotherapy, Pomeranian University of Medicine, 71-252 Szczecin, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Robert","family":"Kowalczyk","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Maxillo-Facial Surgery Clinic, Pomeranian Medical University, 71-252 Szczecin, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0126-8418","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Sebastian","family":"Ochenduszko","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Oncology, Dr. Peset University Hospital, Av.de Gaspar Aguilar 90, 46017 Valencia, Spain"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7901-0900","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Inmaculada","family":"Maestu Maiques","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Oncology, Dr. Peset University Hospital, Av.de Gaspar Aguilar 90, 46017 Valencia, Spain"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0464-1214","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Katarzyna","family":"Radomska","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Otolaryngology, Pomeranian University of Medicine, 71-252 Szczecin, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,19]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","unstructured":"(2025, December 30). 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