PFKP and head and neck squamous cell carcinoma: Statistical significance was determined by Student's <i>t</i>-test and ANOVA.<h4>Results</h4>PFKP emerged as the pivotal prognostic biomarker for HNSCC, demonstrating significant upregulation at mRNA/protein levels in tumors versus normal tissues (TCGA/clinical cohorts) and correlating with reduced overall and disease-specific survival.