In a new study entitled “Adjuvant ipilimumab versus placebo after complete resection of high-risk stage III melanoma (EORTC 18071): a randomised, double-blind, phase 3 trial” researchers show that advanced stage melanoma patients submitted to surgery and treated afterwards with ipilimumab improved recurrence-free survival. The study was published in the journal The Lancet.
MRV Research
Researchers Discover a Melanoma-Intrinsic Pathway That Blocks Anti-Tumor Immunity
Researchers at The University of Chicago recently published in the journal Nature the discovery of a melanoma-cell-intrinsic oncogenic pathway that can mediate cancer immune evasion by inhibiting T cells (the primary anti-cancer weapon of the immune system), leading to the development of resistance to cancer immunotherapies. The study is entitled “Melanoma-intrinsic beta-catenin signaling prevents anti-tumor immunity.”
Keytruda recommended for approval in Europe as advanced melanoma treatment
Merck announced that the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use of the European Medicines Agency has adopted a positive opinion in recommending Keytruda for treating advanced melanoma.
FDA Grants Orphan Drug Designation to Aura Biosciences’ Novel Treatment for Uveal Melanoma
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. Aura Biosciences, a biotech company developing highly tumor-targeted breakthrough therapies for rare cancers, has been granted Orphan Disease Designation by the FDA for its drug AU-011 for the treatment of Uveal Melanoma. The FDA’s Orphan Drug Designation program provides orphan status to drugs and biologics, which demonstrate promise for the diagnosis and/or treatment of rare diseases or conditions in the US. In addition, the first oral presentation of Aura Biosciences’ pre-clinical research, ‘Evaluating the in vivo efficacy of a first-in-class drug for the treatment of primary uveal melanoma’, was recently delivered by McGill University Health Centre researchers at the ARVO (Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology) Annual Meeting.