Apatinib potentiates the therapeutic effect of anti‐PD‐1 in locally advanced head and neck cancers

Abstract Objectives Antiangiogenic inhibitors have been shown to synergize with immune checkpoint blockade, but the underlying mechanisms of the synergistic response are not fully understood. Patients and Methods We investigate the impact of VEGFR2 inhibition on tumor‐infiltrating immune cells in vivo and the activity of the combination of apatinib and anti‐PD‐1 in synergistic mouse model of HNSCC. A patient with squamous cell carcinoma of the left tongue with cervical lymph node were received with combined induction treatment of camrelizumab and apatinib to validate the efficacy of neoadjuvant immunotherapy before surgery. Results We found that apatinib increased the infiltration of CD8 + T cells and decreased the population of Tregs in a preclinical syngeneic mouse model. The proportions of CD8 + PD1 + T cells were significantly increased in apatinib‐treated tumors. The combined treatment of apatinib and anti‐PD‐1 demonstrated better therapeutic benefit than each treatment alone. The patient with squamous cell carcinoma of the left tongue with cervical lymph node achieved major pathologic response (MPR) after two cycles of combined induction treatment. Conclusion Our study demonstrated that apatinib therapy synergized with an anti–PD‐1 antibody in preclinical cancer models and in patient with advanced HNSCC. These results provide a new rationale for advancing this neoadjuvant immunotherapy in large scale of clinical trials of HNSCC.