Melanoma News and Research

Latest Melanoma News and Research

MD Anderson, Pfizer to advance development of immune-based treatment for cancer

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and Pfizer will collaborate in the development of immune-based approaches to cancer treatment, the first such agreement made through MD Anderson's Moon Shots Program immunotherapy platform.

6 Jan 2014

Researchers identify two novel BRAF fusions in melanomas

Stand Up To Cancer, the charitable initiative supporting ground-breaking research aimed at getting new cancer treatments to patients in an accelerated timeframe, announces that Jeffrey A. Sosman, M.D., a Stand Up To Cancer Melanoma Dream Team investigator, William Pao, M.D., Ph.D., a 2009 Stand Up To Cancer Innovative Research Grant recipient and colleagues identified two novel BRAF fusions in melanomas previously considered to be negative for molecular targets, and that melanomas with these fusions were found to be potentially sensitive to anticancer drugs called MEK inhibitors, according to a study recently published in Clinical Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.

2 Jan 2014

Smoking, diets rich in animal products, alcohol have correlations with cancer incidence rates, says study

A multicountry study just published in Nutrients finds that smoking, diets rich in animal products, and alcohol have the strongest correlations with cancer incidence rates. The cancer incidence rates are from 2008 as assembled by the International Agency for Research on Cancer of the World Health Organization.

28 Dec 2013

Cancer immunotherapy named 2013 Breakthrough of the Year by journal Science

Detect. Destroy. Remember. The mantra of the immune system's relentless campaign against infectious invaders and the body's own abnormal cells finally is applying to cancer in meaningful ways.

28 Dec 2013

IQWiG reassesses vemurafenib for treatment of advanced melanoma

Pursuant to the Act on the Reform of the Market for Medicinal Products (AMNOG), the German Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) reassessed vemurafenib (trade name: Zelboraf), a drug for the treatment of adults with a certain type of advanced melanoma.

20 Dec 2013

Blaze Bioscience to initiate first Phase 1 clinical study of BLZ-100 in patients with skin tumors

Blaze Bioscience, Inc. and its subsidiary, Blaze Bioscience Australia Pty Ltd, today announced the initiation of the first Phase 1 clinical study of the first Tumor Paint product candidate, BLZ-100. The study, titled "A Phase I Dose Escalation/Expansion Study of BLZ-100 Administered by Intravenous Injection in Adult Subjects with Skin Cancer," will enroll up to 30 patients with basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, or amelanotic melanoma.

19 Dec 2013

GSK team wins Drug Discovery of Year award for developing trametinib for malignant melanoma

The British Pharmacological Society proudly announces that its Drug Discovery of the Year award has been won by the team at GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) responsible for the development of trametinib - a new treatment for malignant melanoma (a type of skin cancer).

19 Dec 2013

Merck and CNIO sign agreement to collaborate in area of cancer drug development

The Spanish National Cancer Research Centre (CNIO) and the German chemical and pharmaceutical company Merck today signed an agreement in Madrid to collaborate in the area of cancer drug development.

19 Dec 2013

Merck signs license agreement with CNIO for cancer drug development

Merck Serono, the biopharmaceutical division of Merck, today announced that a license agreement has been signed with the Spanish National Cancer Research Centre in Madrid in the area of cancer drug development. The global agreement will build upon CNIO research discoveries to encourage the development and commercialization of new compounds in the field of oncology.

18 Dec 2013

Merck initiates clinical trial to evaluate MK-3475 and pazopanib in advanced renal cell carcinoma

Merck, known as MSD outside the United States and Canada, today announced the initiation of a clinical trial to evaluate the combination of the company's investigational anti-PD-1 immunotherapy, MK-3475, and GlaxoSmithKline's orally administered kinase inhibitor, pazopanib, in advanced renal cell carcinoma.

18 Dec 2013

Researchers discover that adult stem cells suppress cancer during dormant phase

Researchers at UCLA's Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research have discovered a mechanism in adult stem cells by which the cells suppress their ability to initiate cancer during their dormant phase, an understanding that could be exploited for better cancer prevention strategies.

18 Dec 2013

Navidea seeks FDA approval for marketing Lymphoseek Injection for SLN detection

Navidea Biopharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on precision diagnostic radiopharmaceuticals, announced today that it has submitted a Supplemental New Drug Application with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration seeking approval for the marketing and sale of Lymphoseek (technetium 99m tilmanocept) Injection for sentinel lymph node detection in patients with head and neck cancer, an indication for which Lymphoseek was also granted Fast Track designation earlier this month.

17 Dec 2013

New report shows death rates for lung cancer dropping at a faster pace

The Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer, covering the period 1975, showed death rates for lung cancer, which accounts for more than one in four cancer deaths, dropping at a faster pace than in previous years. The recent larger drop in lung cancer deaths is likely the result of decreased cigarette smoking prevalence over many years, and is now being reflected in mortality trends. The lung cancer death rate decline, as well as declines in colorectal, breast, and prostate cancer death rates, has also helped drive decreases in death rates for all cancers types combined, a trend that began about 20 years ago.

17 Dec 2013

OncoSec Medical reports positive interim data from OMS-I100 Phase 2 trial for metastatic melanoma

OncoSec Medical Inc., a company developing its advanced-stage ImmunoPulse DNA-based immunotherapy to treat solid tumors, today announced positive interim data from its ongoing Phase 2 trial of OMS-I100 in the treatment of metastatic melanoma. The results were presented by principal investigator Adil Daud, MD, at the Advances in Cancer Immunotherapy meeting at the University of California San Francisco.

16 Dec 2013

Scientists reveal how two genes interact to kill broad range of cancer cells

Scientists from Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center have revealed how two genes interact to kill a wide range of cancer cells. Originally discovered by the study's lead investigator Paul B. Fisher, M.Ph., Ph.D., the genes known as mda-7/IL-24 and SARI could potentially be harnessed to treat both primary and metastatic forms of brain, breast, colon, lung, ovary, prostate, skin and other cancers.

14 Dec 2013

MD Anderson researcher earns Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences

Basic science research that exposed vital details of cancer's defense against the immune system, revealing an entirely new way to combat these diseases, has earned Jim Allison, Ph.D., a Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences.

14 Dec 2013

Navidea receives Fast Track designation for Lymphoseek injection

Navidea Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. (NYSE MKT:NAVB), a biopharmaceutical company focused on precision diagnostic radiopharmaceuticals, announced today that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Fast Track designation to Lymphoseek® (technetium 99m tilmanocept) Injection for sentinel lymph node detection in patients with head and neck cancer.

11 Dec 2013

MELA Sciences participates in skin cancer diagnostic workshop in Germany

MELA Sciences, Inc., designer and developer of MelaFind®, an FDA and CE Mark approved non-invasive optical device that assists dermatologists in diagnosing melanoma at its most curable stage, participated in a two-day hands-on skin cancer diagnostics workshop in Augsburg, Germany, where leading dermatologists examined "high-risk" melanoma patients with MelaFind® and also participated in an imaging devices exhibit.

6 Dec 2013

Cancer survival rates still vary widely between European countries

Cancer survival still varies widely between European countries despite major improvements in cancer diagnosis and treatment during the first decade of the 21st century, according to the latest EUROCARE-5 reports covering over 50% of the adult and 77% of the childhood population of Europe.

6 Dec 2013

18F-FDOPA imaging can help distinguish radiation-induced lesions in patients with brain metastases

Imaging with the molecular imaging tracer 18F-FDOPA can help distinguish radiation-induced lesions from new tumor growth in patients who have been treated with radiation for brain metastases, according to new research published in The Journal of Nuclear Medicine. Using this amino acid tracer, researchers found that physicians could accurately differentiate the two types of lesions 83 percent of the time. Progression-free survival could also be predicted through evaluating the 18F-FDOPA imaging results.

4 Dec 2013