Of the hundreds of genes that can be mutated in a single case of melanoma, only a handful may be true “drivers" of cancer. In research that recently appeared in Nature Genetics, a Weizmann Institute of Science team has now revealed one of the drivers of a particularly deadly subset of melanomas that is seeing a rise in new cases. This gene is a newly identified member of a group of genes called tumor suppressor genes, and is mutated in some 5.4% of melanomas. Furthermore, its expression was found to be lost in over 30% of human melanomas; this loss, according to the research, was associated with reduced patient survival. The discovery might open new doors to understanding how this cancer grows and spreads, and may lead in the future to new directions in treatment.
MRV Research
New Melanoma Drug Uses Tumor-Busting Virus
The Food and Drug Administration approved a new drug Tuesday that uses a genetically engineered cold sore virus to bust up melanoma skin cancer tumors.
It’s the first drug of its type to get FDA approval. It’s made using a genetically engineered herpes virus — the same kind that causes cold sores — that carries an immune system compound into tumors, causing them to burst apart.
The drug, called Imlygic, doesn’t cure the patient and it has not been shown to help patients live longer, But it provides relief from melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer.
Massive screen of drug combinations may find treatment for resistant, BRAF-mutant melanoma
A team of Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) investigators has discovered a new combination of drugs that may be effective against one of the deadliest cancers, malignant melanoma. The combination – pairing a drug targeted against mutations in the BRAF gene with a second drug that targets another important signaling pathway – was discovered through one of the largest screens of cancer drug combinations conducted to date. Findings from the study conducted at the MGH Cutaneous Biology Research Center and Center for Molecular Therapeutics have been published in the open-access journal PLOS ONE.
Phase Holographic Imaging and University of California, San Francisco Commence Collaboration on Skin Cancer Research
University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) and Phase Holographic Imaging (PHI) have begun their collaboration agreement to accelerate on-going skin cancer research utilizing PHI’s proprietary label-free holographic imaging cytometry technology. The newly released version of the HoloMonitor® M4 has been delivered to UCSF. The program will focus on establishing the best practices and validating the most useful HoloMonitor M4 parameters for simultaneous detection of changes in proliferation, cell death and motility in primary human melanomas and cultured melanocytes.