Allergic history and responses to immunotherapy in individuals with recurrent or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

TL;DR

People with a history of allergies may respond better to immunotherapy for advanced head and neck cancer.

Contribution

This study identifies allergy history as a novel predictor of improved response to immunotherapy in head and neck cancer patients.

Findings

Patients with allergies had a 2.78 times higher odds of responding to immunotherapy.

Current smoking and tumor location in oropharynx/hypopharynx were also linked to better responses.

Allergy history did not negatively impact survival outcomes.

Abstract

To elucidate the association between allergy history and response to immune checkpoint inhibition (ICI) in recurrent or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (RM/HNSCC).

Patients receiving ICI treatment for RM/HNSCC were retrospectively enrolled and classified into two groups based on their previous allergy history. The primary outcome variable assessed was the response to ICI.

A total of 157 patients were included, of whom 27 reported a history of allergies. In multivariate analysis, patients with allergies exhibited an odds ratio of 2.78 [95% confidence interval: 1.54-5.99], significantly surpassing that of the non-allergic group. Other independent predictors of ICI benefit included current smoking status and the primary tumor site being in the oropharynx or hypopharynx. Neither progression-free survival nor overall survival was adversely affected by prior allergy history or smoking status or HPV status or PD-L1 expression.

A prior history of allergies is associated with an enhanced response to immunotherapy in patients with RM/HNSCC.

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