In exploratory analyses of results from the SWOG S1801 trial in patients with stage III to IV resectable melanoma, researchers saw a major pathologic response in more than half of surgical specimens taken from patients who had been treated with neoadjuvant pembrolizumab.
Clinical Trials
Previously Untreated Advanced Melanoma: Addition of Bempegaldesleukin to Nivolumab
In the phase III PIVOT IO 001 trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Adi Diab, MD, and colleagues found that the addition of bempegaldesleukin, a pegylated interleukin-2 cytokine prodrug, to nivolumab did not improve treatment outcomes in previously untreated patients with advanced melanoma.
Novel Intercellular Signaling Mechanisms Promote Melanoma Growth
Investigators led by Kathleen Green, PhD, the Joseph L. Mayberry, Sr., Professor of Pathology and Toxicology, have discovered novel intercellular “crosstalk” between epidermal keratinocytes and melanoma cells that promote cancer growth and metastasis.
Phase 2 SCOPE Trial of SCIB1 Achieves Positive ORR in Advanced Melanoma
Positive objective response results were demonstrated in the first stage of the phase 2 SCOPE trial. Now, 27 additional patients with advanced melanoma will be treated with SCIB1 and checkpoint inhibitors in stage 2.