IFNG and head and neck squamous cell carcinoma: Currently, an IFN-γ-related signature (the original 6 genes and an expanded 18-gene signature), which was established as a biomarker of pembrolizumab using the tissue-based NanoString platform, is often employed (5, 8) based on its relatively high AUC of 0.75 for response prediction in RM HNSCC (6).