Doctors described as "unprecedented" the results of a clinical trial for a new triple-action anti-cancer injection, which allegedly led to the complete disappearance of tumours in patients with advanced cancer.
The international study was carried out in 11 countries and involved patients whose cancer had spread or recurred, while it no longer responded to existing treatments.
The drug, called amivantamab, caused tumours to shrink in more than a third of the participants, with impressive results already recorded within the first few weeks. In 15 patients, the tumors disappeared completely.
Professor of Biological Cancer Therapies at the London Institute of Cancer Research, Kevin Harrington, said:
"These are unprecedentedly strong responses in patients whose disease had become resistant to both chemotherapy and immunotherapy. This is a category of patients with extremely limited treatment options, so the level of benefit we're seeing is really impressive."
He, who is also a consultant oncologist at the Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, added that the treatment "has the potential to benefit many thousands of patients every year".
The results were presented in Chicago at the annual conference of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), the largest international organization in the field of cancer.
The study involved 102 patients with head and neck cancer, the sixth most common cancer worldwide. The tumours shrank or disappeared in 43 patients. Of these, 28 showed a significant reduction in volume, while 15 achieved complete disappearance of the disease.
The researchers reported that similar results have already been observed in patients with lung cancer. Amivantamab, developed by Johnson & Johnson, is currently being evaluated in about 60 clinical trials for various types of cancer, including lung, colon, brain and stomach cancer.
Treatment works through three different mechanisms. It inhibits the EGFR receptor, a protein that promotes tumour growth, blocks the biological MET pathway, which cancer cells often use to evade treatments, and at the same time activates the immune system to attack the tumour.
One of the first patients to benefit was 56-year-old Carl Walsh, who was diagnosed with tongue cancer in May 2024 and joined the OrigAMI-4 study in July 2025.
"I initially underwent chemotherapy and immunotherapy, but unfortunately without success," he said. "I was then offered to participate in the study. I am now in my 17th cycle of treatment and I am very satisfied with my progress."
Unlike many cancer treatments that are given intravenously, amivantamab is given by small subcutaneous injection, which makes the procedure faster, more comfortable for patients, and easier for outpatients.
Most side effects were mild to moderate, and less than 10% of patients had to discontinue treatment.
Walsh said he has now returned to a normal daily routine. Before the treatment, he had difficulty speaking and feeding due to the pain and swelling. After starting treatment, swelling and pain were significantly reduced, while serious side effects of chemotherapy subsided.
The researchers also emphasized that the study focused on patients with head and neck cancers that are not related to the HPV virus, a category that is usually more difficult to treat therapeutically.
Patients who received amivantamab lived an average of 12.5 months after starting treatment, despite suffering from a particularly aggressive form of cancer with a poor prognosis when conventional treatments fail.
Professor Christian Helin, chief executive of the Cancer Research Institute, said:
"The study proves that the development of new treatments through rigorous scientific research can lead to substantial advances even for patients with minimal treatment options.
Achieving this level of tumour response and encouraging survival outcomes in such a difficult category of patients is an important step forward."
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