Anti-programmed cell death-1/programmed cell death-ligand 1 (PD-1/PD-L1) antibody has been approved for second-line or first-line treatment in a variety of malignant neoplasms, including melanoma, lung cancer, renal cell carcinoma (RCC), head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) and gastroesophageal cancer [1, 2]. The gene discussed is PDCD1; the disease is head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.