A brief overview of the current understanding of tumor immunology in head and neck cancer will be presented as an introduction. Furthermore, I will discuss our recent findings on tumor vaccine development in head and neck cancer, including the identification of epitopes derived from tumor antigens and the in vivo optimization of a peptide-based vaccine targeting head and neck cancer.

The management of surgical margins in oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma is a subject of ongoing debate in current literature. While most clinical guidelines define resection margins based on geometric parameters—typically >5 mm in planar measurement or >7 mm³ in three-dimensional assessment—this approach may not account for the complex anatomical and biological variability of the oral cavity. Modern approaches advocate for a more nuanced view that considers the variability in tumor subsites and structural anatomy, as well as key factors such as the tumor infiltration front, the mode of tumor progression (mucosal versus stromal), and the involvement of critical anatomical spaces like the sublingual areas, the T-N tract, and the infratemporal fossa.

There is also ongoing discussion regarding the most effective methods for evaluating surgical margins, including imaging techniques, bioendoscopy, and intraoperative frozen section analysis, with no standardized decision-making algorithm currently established.