Several clinical trials of epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitors suggest the targeted drugs could improve locoregional control and survival in HNSCC patients with primary, recurrent or distant metastatic lesions; cetuximab, for example, is now firmly established as an active component of treatment for advanced HNSCC, alone and in combination with other modalities, including radiotherapy, platinum-based chemotherapy and induction therapy. The gene discussed is EGFR; the disease is head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.