Having a history of teenage acne is associated with an increased risk of melanoma, independent of known risk factors, according to a study published in Cancer.
MRV Research
Several cancer susceptibility variants also affect melanoma risk
Pleiotropy refers to a single genetic locus having multiple phenotypic effects. Evidence of pleiotropy can suggest shared molecular mechanisms or disease susceptibility pathways between phenotypes. Several regions of the genome demonstrate pleiotropic effects with multiple cancers, but the extent of these pleiotropic relationships has not been fully characterized.
Melanoma-Activating Beta-Catenin Signalling Prevents Immune System Activation
In a new study entitled “Melanoma-intrinsic beta-catenin signaling prevents anti-tumor immunity,” a research team at University of Chicago unraveled the mechanism by which melanoma tumors are able to resist to the most effective immunotherapies currently available. These findings identify new candidate targets for developing immune tools to overcome tumor immune evasion pathways. The study was published in the May 11, 2015 issue of Nature.
The ongoing battle with melanoma
Malignant melanoma – a type skin cancer – is almost always curable when it’s found in its very early stages. Unfortunately, it’s far more aggressive than other skin cancers and often becomes metastatic – spreading to other parts of the body. When it reaches this stage, it becomes almost untreatable, and is nearly always fatal.