Somatic evolution of head and neck cancer - Biological robustness and latent vulnerability

► There is an urgent need to develop a novel conceptual framework for the treatment of HNSCC. ► The biological robustness of HNSCC was analyzed through a somatic evolution model. ► This model well explains the mechanism of “escaping from oncogene addiction”. ► We discuss about the possible approaches to target vulnerability of evolving HNSCC.