The recurrence and metastasis of HNSCC are facilitated by immune evasion,26 which is mediated in part by the expression of programmed death‐ligand (PD‐L1 and PD‐L2), which binds to the T‐cell suppressive immune checkpoint receptor PD‐1.22, 27. Here, PDCD1 is linked to head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.