Jean-Pascal Machiels, MD, PhD, from the Cliniques Universitaires Saint-Luc, Brussels, Belgium talks to us about the progress being made in the treatment of head and neck cancer, such as immunotherapy involving anti-PD-1 antibodies, giving us details of some of the considerations that must be considered. Specialists are also keen to understand how knowledge of a patient’s genetic mutations could help assign the most appropriate treatment, and Dr Machiels explains how they are attempting to answer this question. This interview was recorded at the 2017 European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) conference held in Madrid, Spain.