Johnson & Johnson's drug amivantamab demonstrated strong tumor responses in a multi-country clinical trial involving 102 patients with metastatic or recurrent head and neck cancer resistant to chemotherapy and immunotherapy [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7]. The trial excluded HPV-positive cases, focusing on harder-to-treat HPV-negative tumors [1, 3, 4].

The results presented May 31 at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) annual meeting in Chicago showed 43 patients experienced tumor shrinkage or disappearance, including 15 with complete tumor eradication [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7]. Average overall survival was about 12.5 months, notable given the poor prognosis of these patients [1, 5].

Amivantamab works through three mechanisms: blocking EGFR, blocking MET pathways that help cancer evade immunity, and activating the immune system against tumors [1, 3, 5, 6, 7]. Unlike many cancer therapies, it is given by subcutaneous injection every 3 weeks in about a 5-minute outpatient procedure, offering quicker, more convenient treatment [1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7].

Side effects were mostly mild or moderate, with under 10% of patients stopping treatment due to adverse effects [1, 3, 4, 7]. The drug is tested in roughly 60 clinical trials, mainly for lung cancer but also colorectal, brain, and gastrointestinal cancers [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7].

Kevin Harrington, a cancer therapy expert at the Institute of Cancer Research London and Royal Marsden NHS Trust, called the responses "unprecedentedly strong" for patients resistant to chemotherapy and immunotherapy [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7]. He said, "These are unprecedentedly strong responses in patients whose disease has become resistant to both chemotherapy and immunotherapy" [2].

Among trial participants was 56-year-old Carl Walsh from the UK, diagnosed with tongue cancer in May 2024 and enrolled in the OrigAMI-4 trial in July 2025. He reported less swelling, pain relief, and regained speech ability [1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7]. He said, "自從開始治療以來，我的腫脹明顯減輕，疼痛程度也大大緩解。我也不再像化療期間那樣遭受嚴重的副作用困擾了。" [1].

The trial included patients from 11 countries and underscores amivantamab's potential in tough-to-treat head and neck cancers [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7]. UK Cancer Research Institute CEO Professor Harling said, "In such a hard-to-treat group, achieving such a high tumor response rate and encouraging survival results is an important step forward" [1].