Christian Simon

Presentation
Stage I p16-positive oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) now accounts for a growing share of head-and-neck cancers in high-income countries, affecting younger patients with limited tobacco exposure and offering excellent disease control but meaningful treatment-related morbidity. This talk will first recap contemporary epidemiology and AJCC 8th (and 9th) edition staging, highlighting survival outcomes and patterns of failure unique to HPV-mediated disease. We will then review randomized and prospective trials comparing surgical and non-surgical pathways—contrasting transoral surgery with risk-adapted adjuvant therapy against definitive radiotherapy (with or without chemotherapy)—with emphasis on oncologic equivalence, functional outcomes (swallowing/voice), toxicity, and quality of life (e.g., de-intensification strategies and margin/ENE-driven adjuvant tailoring). Finally, we will survey ongoing de-escalation studies (dose, volume, and systemic therapy reduction; proton therapy; selective use of immunotherapy) and emerging tools such as circulating HPV DNA for response-adapted care.

Bio
Christian Simon is full professor of Medicine at the University of Lausanne (UNIL), the chairman of otolaryngology-head and neck surgery at the CHUV and serves as director of the Department of Surgery. He is also the chief medical officer of the centre for head and neck cancers at the CHUV. He obtained is MD degree at the University of Hamburg, trained in otolaryngology – head and neck surgery and reconstructive surgery at the University of Tubingen, the MD Anderson Cancer Centre in Houston, Washington University in St. Louis, and the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. He served as the chair of the EORTC HNCIG and is currently the secretary of the group, and he is the current treasurer of the EHNS. His interests are head and neck surgical oncology, robotic surgery, and associated clinical trials. He currently runs EORTC 1420, a phase III randomized prospective trial comparing transoral surgery with radiation therapy. He is the author and co-author of over 140 peer reviewed publications and book chapters.