Major Changes in Head and Neck Staging for 2018.

Oncologists should be aware of three major modifications and additions to staging head and neck cancer that became effective in 2018. Oral cavity cancers have the addition of depth of invasion; oropharyngeal cancers (OPCs) are now distinguished by the immunohistochemical stain, p16, into those that are associated with high-risk human papillomavirus and those that are not; and all sites except nasopharyngeal carcinoma and high-risk human papillomavirus OPC will now include the important parameter of extranodal extension. The rationale and emerging data supporting these changes are discussed in this article and the accompanying oral presentation at the 2018 ASCO Annual Meeting.