Evidence map›Paper›PMID 32708945›Full record

ReviewCancers2020

Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors in Oral Cavity Squamous Cell Carcinoma and Oral Potentially Malignant Disorders: A Systematic Review.

Omar Kujan, Bede van Schaijik, Camile S Farah

Open access · goldAbstract readReview
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in Cancers, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 59 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
59citing papers in PubMed, 3 pooled it
4.0field-weighted citation impact, top 5% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

59 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 90 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Predictors of survival among head and neck cancer patients after radiotherapy based on health-related quality of life indices and symptoms-specific outcomes: a systematic review.Quality of life research : an international journal of quality of life aspects of treatment, care and rehabilitation · 2025
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  5. Modulation ofInternational journal of molecular sciences · 2026
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Omar KujanUWA Dental School, The University of Western Australia, Nedlands, WA 6009, Australia.ORCID 0000-0002-5951-8280
Bede van SchaijikUWA Dental School, The University of Western Australia, Nedlands, WA 6009, Australia.ORCID 0000-0003-1847-4936
Camile S FarahAustralian Centre for Oral Oncology Research & Education, Nedlands, WA 6009, Australia.ORCID 0000-0002-1642-6204
The University of Western Australia · AUFiona Stanley Hospital · AU

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Cancers of the oral cavity cause significant cancer-related death worldwide. While survival rates have improved in recent years, new methods of treatment are being investigated to limit disease progression and to improve outcomes, particularly in oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and oral potentially malignant disorders (OPMD). The emerging treatment modality of immunotherapy targets immune checkpoint molecules including PD-1 and its ligand PD-L1, CTLA-4, LAG-3, and TIM-3 to enhance the host immune response against tumours, and to limit the growth and progression of cancer cells. In this systematic review, we searched five databases for keywords pertaining to oral cancers and OPMDs, along with immune checkpoint inhibitors, in order to summarize the current status of their use and efficacy in these diseases. A total of 644 different articles were identified between 2004 and 2019, with 76 deemed suitable for inclusion in the study, providing a total of 8826 samples. Combined results show expression of PD-1 and PD-L1 in the majority of OPMD and OSCC samples, with expression correlating with increased progression and decreased survival rates. Immunotherapy agents pembrolizumab and nivolumab target PD-1 and have been shown to prolong survival rates and improve disease outcomes, especially in combination with chemotherapy or radiotherapy. Despite the equivocal nature of current evidence, there is support for the prognostic and predictive value of immune checkpoint molecules, especially PD-L1, and many studies provide support for the effective use of immune checkpoint inhibitors in the management of OSCC. Limited data is available for OPMD, therefore this should be the focus of future research.

Indexed as

immune checkpoint inhibitorsoral potentially malignant disordersoral squamous cell carcinomaPD-1PD-L1

Identifiers

PMID32708945
PMCPMC7409293
OpenAlexW3042975207

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.