A new international study showed that adding the drug pembrolizumab to standard treatment for head and neck cancer increases the average remission period by a factor of two—from 2.5 to 5 years. The study involved 714 patients from 24 countries. It is the largest success in therapy for this form of cancer in the past 20 years.
The drug belongs to the class of immunotherapies: it helps the immune system recognize and attack the tumor by blocking PD-L1, a protein the cancer uses to hide from the body’s defenses. The effect was most pronounced in patients with high levels of this protein, but improvements were recorded in most participants regardless of tumor characteristics.
The study has already prompted revisions to existing treatment protocols. This means that thousands of people around the world can hope for a treatment that does not only extend life, but also improves its quality.
Source: The Guardian
