Table 1 Progress in immunotherapy protocols for HNCs
From: T cell effects and mechanisms in immunotherapy of head and neck tumors
Treatment | Mechanisms mediated by T cells | Advantages | Disadvantages | Reference(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Tumor vaccine | T cells are activated directly by HNC-specific antigens | Almost no toxicity | Difficult to develop and achieves no definitive effect on the most advanced patients | |
Targeted drugs | NK cells, which induce T cells, produce immune effects | An essential part of combination therapy | Use alone does not significantly improve survival in patients with advanced and R/M HNCs | [111] |
CAR-T | Activated tumor antigen-specific T cells are directly injected into the host | The immune effect is effective and long-lasting | Dependent on the harsh TME Application in HNC remains to be seen | [27] |
ICIs | Regulation of T cell activity | The effects are long-lasting | Do not significantly improve survival in patients with advanced and R/M HNCs | [112] |
Combined immunotherapy | Novel immunomodulators bind to PD1/PD-L1 inhibitors | Can significantly improve the remission rate of patients compared to immunotherapy alone | Still to be seen | [113] |