April is Head and Neck Cancer Awareness Month
Join with the AACR to find better ways to prevent and treat head and neck cancer
Head and neck cancers usually begin in the squamous cells that line the mucosal surfaces inside the mouth, nose, throat, and salivary glands. These are referred to as squamous cell carcinomas of the head and neck. Head and neck cancers also include less common cancers that occur in the salivary glands, sinuses, muscles, and nerves of the head and neck region.
Head and neck cancers account for nearly 4% of all cancers in the United States, according to the National Cancer Institute (NCI). The NCI estimates that about 72,680 cancers of the oral cavity, pharynx, and larynx were diagnosed in the United States, and 16,680 people died from these diseases in 2025.
Head and neck cancer is more common among men than women and in people over age 50. Risk factors that can increase your risk for head and neck cancer include tobacco, alcohol, betel quid, wood dust, and radiation. Head and neck cancer can also be caused by certain strains of HPV or by the Epstein-Barr virus.
Symptoms of head and neck cancer
Symptoms of head and neck cancer may include a sore throat that does not go away or a lump in the mouth or throat that does not heal. Hoarseness; trouble breathing, speaking, or swallowing; or unusual pain, swelling, or bleeding of the mouth, nose, and throat may also be signs of head and neck cancer.
New Treatment for Head and Neck Cancer
At the AACR Annual Meeting 2025, results from the phase III KEYNOTE-689 clinical trial were presented that showed pembrolizumab (Keytruda) can supplement standard-of-care treatments for stage 3 or 4 head and neck squamous cell carcinoma when given before and after surgery to increase tumor elimination prior to surgery and protect against relapse. Pembrolizumab is a PD-1 immune checkpoint inhibitor that helps the immune system attack cancer cells. In patients whose cancer had high PD-L1 expression, the addition of pembrolizumab to their treatment regimen reduced cancer recurrence 34%. The results from this trial led to the first new approval for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma in decades. Learn more about the trial and this new treatment for head and neck cancer on Cancer Research Catalyst, the AACR’s official blog.
One Patient’s Story
When Richard Schlueter was diagnosed with stage 4 head and neck squamous cell carcinoma in February 2024, his doctor was blunt: “This disease will end your life.” But he found hope at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) where he qualified for a leading-edge clinical trial involving tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), a personalized immunotherapy designed to harness and amplify his own immune cells. But funding cuts at the NIH led to the dismissal of essential lab personnel that delayed his treatment with this TIL therapy by over a month. Read his story in the AACR Cancer Progress Report, and learn more about how his experience motivated him to advocate for NIH funding on Cancer Research Catalyst.
More on head and neck cancers
- While cisplatin is a standard treatment for people with nasopharyngeal cancer that has spread beyond the upper throat, this type of chemotherapy can also cause debilitating side effects. But a recent study found that people who take the immunotherapy toripalimab (Loqtorzi) may be able to forgo some rounds of cisplatin. Learn more in Cancer Today, a magazine published by AACR for cancer patients, survivors, and their caregivers.
- In a survey of 317 survivors who had received radiation to treat head and neck cancer, 40% said they still experienced dry mouth and 15% had symptoms indicating depression. Learn more about the survivorship needs for those who had been diagnosed with head and neck cancers in Cancer Today.
- Dry mouth from radiation treatment can also lead to tooth loss and other dental issues that that go far beyond what most individual’s dental insurance will cover. Learn more about these side effects of treatment and the financial burden it places on head and neck cancer survivors in Cancer Today.
- Cancers of the face, jaw, and sinuses can require surgery that forever alter an individual’s appearance. However, results from a phase II trial published in the AACR journal Clinical Cancer Research revealed that 63% of patients with advanced sinonasal squamous cell carcinoma who received induction chemotherapy were able to avoid major surgeries. Learn more about how certain treatments are helping some cancer patients avoid surgery on Cancer Research Catalyst.
- At the AACR Annual Meeting 2024, researchers presented results from a clinical trial of a newly developed therapeutic cancer vaccine for patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. Learn more about the results on Cancer Research Catalyst: Personalized Neoantigen Vaccines Boost Progress Against Aggressive Cancers.
for more information
Please see our page on head and neck cancers. It includes links to information on the specific organ sites that make up the head and neck category.
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