ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Oncol.
Sec. Head and Neck Cancer
This article is part of the Research TopicCombining Radiation Therapy with Immunotherapies: Mechanisms, Challenges, and Clinical AdvancesView all articles
Efficacy, Safety, and Survival Outcomes of Radiotherapy Combined with Nimotuzumab Following Induction Chemotherapy in Locally Advanced Head and Neck Cancer
Provisionally accepted
- 1Shantou Central Hospital, Shantou, China
- 2Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, China
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Objective: To evaluate the efficacy, safety, and survival impact of adding nimotuzumab to radiotherapy following induction chemotherapy in patients with locally advanced head and neck cancer (HNC). Methods: This retrospective cohort study included 313 patients with locally advanced HNC treated between 2019 and 2022. Patients were divided into an observation group (n=145), receiving radiotherapy plus nimotuzumab after induction chemotherapy, and a control group (n=168), receiving radiotherapy alone. Baseline characteristics, short-term efficacy (RECIST 1.1), overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS), and adverse events were compared. A primary subgroup analysis focused on nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) patients, who constituted the majority of the cohort, to assess survival benefits specifically in this population. Results: The observation group showed a significantly higher complete response rate (41.38% vs. 25.00%, P<0.05) and a lower incidence of disease progression (1.38% vs. 5.95%, P<0.05) compared to the control group. Median overall survival was significantly longer in the observation group (42.3 vs. 31.7 months, P=0.008). Multivariate analysis confirmed nimotuzumab use as an independent protective factor for survival (HR=0.62, 95% CI: 0.41–0.93, P=0.021). Advanced T stage (T3–T4) and clinical stage (III–IV) were independent risk factors. Subgroup analysis indicated that the survival benefit of nimotuzumab was particularly pronounced in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma, those aged <60 years, and those with extensive lymph node involvement (N2–N3). There was no significant increase in grade ≥3 adverse events in the observation group (P>0.05). Conclusion: Adding nimotuzumab to radiotherapy after induction chemotherapy significantly improves tumor response and long-term survival in patients with locally advanced HNC, without increasing severe toxicity. As the cohort predominantly comprised NPC patients, this regimen appears particularly promising for NPC. However, the survival benefit observed should not be generalized to non-nasopharyngeal HNC due to the limited number of such cases in this study. Further prospective studies in more homogeneous populations are warranted.
Keywords: head and neck cancer, Induction Chemotherapy, nimotuzumab, overall survival, Radiotherapy, Safety, targeted therapy, treatment efficacy
Received: 17 Dec 2025; Accepted: 02 Feb 2026.
Copyright: © 2026 Zhuang, Chen, Xu and Lin. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Zhenxi Xu
Kun Lin
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