I now feel able to live a normal life.
In the long human struggle against cancer's most stubborn forms, a small injection has offered something rare — genuine surprise. Researchers in London have reported that amivantamab, a bispecific antibody already approved for certain lung cancers, shrank tumors in nearly half of patients whose head and neck cancers had resisted every standard treatment, with fifteen individuals achieving complete remission. Presented to the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the findings arrive as a quiet but significant turning point for a population that had, in the most practical sense, run out of road.
- For patients whose cancers had defeated both chemotherapy and immunotherapy, the absence of remaining options was not a medical abstraction — it was a daily reality closing in.
- Amivantamab disrupted that trajectory by simultaneously blocking two tumor growth pathways while recruiting the immune system itself, producing tumor responses in 42% of trial participants within weeks.
- Fifteen patients saw their tumors vanish entirely, and one participant — a 56-year-old whose tongue cancer had left him barely able to speak or eat — described reclaiming a normal life by his seventeenth treatment cycle.
- The injection format, administered every three weeks in an outpatient setting with mild side effects, removes the logistical burden of intravenous infusions and makes the treatment practically accessible.
- With regulatory approval still pending, the drug's trajectory points toward thousands of annual beneficiaries, particularly among HPV-negative patients for whom outcomes have historically been the most severe.
When oncologists at London's Institute of Cancer Research released their findings on May 30th, even experienced researchers took notice. Amivantamab, a Johnson & Johnson injection already used in lung cancer, had shrunk tumors in 42 percent of patients whose head and neck cancers had stopped responding to chemotherapy and immunotherapy alike. For fifteen of those patients, the tumors disappeared entirely.
The trial drew 102 participants across 55 hospitals in eleven countries — all of them at the end of the standard treatment road. Every three weeks, they received a simple outpatient injection rather than hours of intravenous infusion. The drug works by blocking two separate tumor growth pathways simultaneously while also activating the immune system against the cancer. Tumors began responding within roughly six weeks, and patients lived a median of 12.5 months after starting treatment.
Among them was Carl Walsh, a 56-year-old from Birmingham diagnosed with tongue cancer in May 2024. After chemotherapy and immunotherapy both failed him, he joined the trial in July 2025. By his seventeenth cycle, the swelling had reduced, the pain had eased, and the debilitating side effects of his prior treatment had lifted. "I now feel able to live a normal life," he said.
Head and neck cancer affects roughly 12,800 people annually in the UK and ranks sixth globally. The trial focused specifically on HPV-negative cases — historically the hardest to treat and the least responsive to existing therapies. Professor Kevin Harrington of the Institute of Cancer Research described the responses as "unprecedentedly strong" for this population, noting that the treatment could reach thousands of patients each year if approved. For now, the results represent something rarer than a clinical milestone: a second chance for people who had been told there were no more chances left.
On Saturday, May 30th, oncologists at London's Institute of Cancer Research announced results that surprised even seasoned cancer researchers: an injection called amivantamab had shrunk tumours in 42 percent of patients with head and neck cancer that had stopped responding to every standard treatment available. For fifteen of those patients, the tumours disappeared entirely.
The trial enrolled 102 people across 55 hospitals in eleven countries, all of them facing the same grim situation. Their cancers had continued growing despite chemotherapy and immunotherapy—the two main weapons in the oncologist's arsenal. These were patients for whom options had essentially run out. What they received instead was amivantamab, a small injection developed by Johnson & Johnson, administered every three weeks in an outpatient clinic. No intravenous drips, no hours spent tethered to a hospital chair. Just an injection, then home.
The drug works through an unusual mechanism. It is a bispecific monoclonal antibody, meaning it targets two separate pathways simultaneously. One blocks EGFR, a protein that helps tumours grow. The other blocks MET, a separate escape route cancer cells often use to evade treatment. But amivantamab does something else too: it activates the immune system itself to attack the cancer. In the trial, tumours began responding within about six weeks. Patients lived a median of 12.5 months after starting treatment—a meaningful extension for a cancer type with historically dismal outcomes once standard therapies fail. Before the cancer began growing again, patients had a median of six-and-a-half months of disease control.
Carl Walsh, a 56-year-old from Birmingham, entered the trial in July 2025 after his tongue cancer had resisted both chemotherapy and immunotherapy. He had been diagnosed in May 2024. By his seventeenth treatment cycle, the change was unmistakable. "I now feel able to live a normal life," he said in a statement released by the institute. Before amivantamab, he could barely speak clearly and found eating painful because of swelling. The swelling reduced significantly. His pain improved considerably. And the severe side effects that had shadowed his chemotherapy—the ones that had made ordinary life difficult—were gone.
Head and neck cancer is the sixth most common cancer globally, affecting around 12,800 people annually in the UK alone. Most cases that are not caused by human papillomavirus (HPV) are notoriously difficult to treat and respond poorly to standard therapy. The trial deliberately focused on these harder cases, excluding HPV-positive patients. This matters because it means the drug showed its strongest results precisely where it is needed most.
Professor Kevin Harrington, a biological cancer therapies specialist at the Institute of Cancer Research and consultant oncologist at The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, called the results "unprecedentedly strong responses in patients whose disease has become resistant to both chemotherapy and immunotherapy." He noted that for this population, treatment options are extremely limited. "Seeing this level of benefit is very striking," he said, adding that the treatment could potentially help thousands of patients each year.
The side effects were mild to moderate. Fewer than ten patients stopped treatment because of adverse reactions. The injection format itself represents a practical advantage: it is faster and more convenient than intravenous medications, and significantly easier to deliver in outpatient clinics where patients can be seen and sent home without lengthy infusions.
Amivantamab has already been approved for multiple subtypes of lung cancer. The head and neck cancer results, presented to the American Society of Clinical Oncology on Sunday, suggest the drug's reach may extend further. For patients like Carl Walsh—people who had exhausted the standard options and faced a narrowing road—the results offer something that had seemed impossible: a second chance at a normal life.
Citações Notáveis
These are unprecedentedly strong responses in patients whose disease has become resistant to both chemotherapy and immunotherapy. For this group of patients, treatment options are extremely limited, so seeing this level of benefit is very striking.— Professor Kevin Harrington, Institute of Cancer Research and The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust
A Conversa do Hearth Outra perspectiva sobre a história
Why does it matter that this is an injection rather than an IV drip?
Because it changes the entire experience of treatment. An IV infusion can take hours. You're anchored to a chair, to a hospital. An injection takes minutes. You get it and you leave. For someone already exhausted by cancer, that's not a small thing.
The trial only had 102 people. How confident should we be in these numbers?
It's a real limitation, but these are people with a specific, difficult diagnosis—treatment-resistant head and neck cancer. Finding 102 of them across 11 countries and getting them into a trial is actually substantial. And the results were consistent enough that major cancer organizations are taking them seriously.
What does "bispecific monoclonal antibody" actually mean for a patient?
It means the drug is designed to hit cancer from multiple angles at once. It blocks two different pathways the cancer uses to survive, and it also wakes up the immune system to fight back. It's more sophisticated than older drugs that just attacked one thing.
Carl Walsh said he can now live a normal life. How much of that is the drug and how much is just hope?
That's fair to question. But he's not the only one—43 patients saw their tumours shrink. And he's specific about what changed: swelling went down, pain improved, he can eat and speak again. Those are measurable things, not just feeling better.
What happens next? Is this drug available to patients now?
Not yet for head and neck cancer. It's already approved for lung cancer, but this trial data has to go through regulatory review. If approved, it would be a genuine option for people in a situation where options barely exist.