A variety of therapeutic options for melanoma have been developed since 2011, changing the way advanced melanomas are treated. Some treatments focus on specific mutations found in melanoma patients, such as BRAFV600E or BRAF V600K, but not all patients carry these mutations. When patients present BRAF mutation-negative melanomas they often fail on BRAF inhibitor medications, stimulating research to treat these patients with alternative therapies.
MRV Research
FDA Panels Support Approval of T-VEC in Melanoma
In a combined decision, members of the FDA’s Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee (ODAC) and Cellular, Tissue and Gene Therapies Advisory Committee (CTGTAC) voted 22-1 to recommend approval of the oncolytic immunotherapy talimogene laherparepvec (T-VEC) as a treatment for patients with advanced melanoma. A final approval decision from the FDA is scheduled by October 27, 2015.
Common Skin Mole Mutations Related To Hundreds Of Cancer Possibilities
An international team of scientists led by Houston Methodist researchers managed to identify in mice models hundreds of possible new genes that might transform benign skin growths into deadly melanomas. These results have been published in the journal Nature Genetics.
Hundreds of cancer possibilities arise from common skin mole mutation
A Houston Methodist-led team of international scientists has identified hundreds of possible new genes in mice that could transform benign skin growths into deadly melanomas.