Doctors are calling them “unprecedented” - and not just because they finally found a treatment that works better than a sternly worded lecture to cancer cells. An international trial spanning 11 countries has shown that a triple-action cancer jab, amivantamab, can eradicate entire tumors in patients whose disease had previously laughed off chemotherapy and immunotherapy.
The drug shrank tumors in more than a third of the 102 patients with head and neck cancer - the world’s sixth most common cancer - and in 15 of them, it made the tumors disappear entirely, like a bad memory after a strong drink. Kevin Harrington, professor of biological cancer therapies at the Institute of Cancer Research, London (ICR), described the results as “unprecedentedly strong responses” in patients whose options were, let’s face it, extremely limited. He also noted the treatment has “the potential to benefit many thousands of patients each year,” which is a nice change from the usual “we’re working on it.”
Amivantamab, developed by Johnson & Johnson, works by blocking both EGFR and MET - proteins and pathways that tumors use to grow and escape treatment - while also giving the immune system a nudge to attack. Unlike many cancer treatments, it’s delivered as a tiny jab under the skin rather than an intravenous drip, making it quicker and more convenient for patients who’d rather not spend their days hooked up to a bag. Side effects were mostly mild to moderate, with fewer than one in 10 patients stopping treatment - a success rate that would make most medications blush.
One of the first beneficiaries, Carl Walsh, 56, of Birmingham, was diagnosed with tongue cancer in May 2024 and joined the OrigAMI-4 trial at the Royal Marsden in July 2025 after chemo and immunotherapy failed. After 17 cycles, he’s back to eating steak - his first big one was a highlight - and speaking normally on headsets at work. “When things were at their worst I was eating soup, rice pudding, tins of ravioli and spaghetti and many, many omelettes,” he said. “Now I feel able to live a normal life.”
The results, to be presented Sunday at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (Asco) meeting in Chicago, also showed similar effects in lung cancer patients. Amivantamab is now being evaluated in about 60 clinical trials for lung, colorectal, brain, and gastric cancers. Researchers emphasized that the study focused on head and neck cancers not caused by HPV - typically harder to treat - making the progress particularly significant. Patients lived a median of 12.5 months after starting treatment, which is a big deal for a cancer that usually gives very poor outcomes once standard treatments stop working.
Prof Kristian Helin, chief executive of the ICR, summed it up: “Achieving this level of tumour response and encouraging survival outcomes in such a challenging‑to‑treat group represents a significant step forward.” In other words, the jab is doing triple duty, and for once, that’s a good thing.