In a nutshell This study evaluated the effectiveness and safety of pembrolizumab (Keytruda) given after surgery in patients with stage II melanoma. The data showed that pembrolizumab given after surgery for up to 1 year significantly reduced the risk of cancer recurrence or death in these patients. Some background Melanoma is one of the most...
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In a nutshell This study investigated the effectiveness and safety of fractionated stereotactic radiation therapy (FSRT) for patients with small and moderate-sized brain metastases (BM). The data showed that FSRT was safe and effective in patients with BM of any size with excellent local control. Some background Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) is...
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In a nutshell This study evaluated the impact of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) on COVID-19 outcomes in patients with cancer. The data showed that the use of ICI treatment before COVID-19 infection does not affect the disease severity or survival outcomes. This study supports the continued use of ICIs in cancer patients during the...
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In a nutshell The study aimed to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of an immunomodulatory IDO/PD-L1 targeting peptide vaccine (IO102/IO103) combined with nivolumab (Opdivo) in patients with metastatic melanoma (MM). The study concluded that the IO102/IO103 vaccine combined with nivolumab is safe and effective in these...
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In a nutshell This study investigated the benefit of frequent surveillance imaging on the survival outcomes in patients with resected stage III melanoma. The data showed that patients who underwent less frequent imaging (12-monthly) had better outcomes than those who underwent more frequent imaging (3- to 4-monthly). Some background Melanoma is a...
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Two of our most popular previous blog posts described free vacation opportunities for adults with cancer. Given the uncertainty of the past two years, we thought it was time for an update. Here is a short list of organizations that have made it their mission to provide needed respite to those affected by cancer. Each has been verified to have...
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In a nutshell This study evaluated the risk of pneumonitis (inflammation of the lung tissue) associated with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) for the treatment of patients with advanced melanoma. The data showed that ICIs were associated with a higher risk of pneumonitis compared with conventional chemotherapy in patients with advanced melanoma. Some...
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In a nutshell This study evaluated the effectiveness and safety of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) in combination with palliative (treatment to relieve pain) radiotherapy (pRT) for the treatment of patients with advanced melanoma. The data showed that the addition of pRT to ICIs is effective and safe in these patients. Some background Melanoma is...
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In a nutshell This study evaluated the effectiveness and safety of sequential administration of high dose aldesleukin (Interleukin-2; Proleukin) and ipilimumab (Yervoy) in patients with metastatic melanoma. The data showed that high dose aldesleukin and ipilimumab were effective and safe when administered sequentially in these patients. Some background...
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In a nutshell This study evaluated the effectiveness of talimogene laherparepvec (Imlygic; T-VEC) after failure of immunotherapy for the treatment of patients with unresectable metastatic melanoma. The data showed that T-VEC after the failure of immunotherapy is safe and effective in these patients. Some background Melanoma is an aggressive type of...
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In a nutshell This study compared the effectiveness and safety of talimogene laherparepvec (Imlygic; T-VEC) plus surgery versus surgery alone for the treatment of patients with resectable advanced stage (III or IV) melanoma. The data showed that T-VEC plus surgery was safe and effective for these patients. Some background Melanoma is an aggressive...
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In a nutshell This study evaluated the outcomes of immune and molecular targeted therapies after surgery for patients with stage III melanoma who did not undergo complete lymph node dissection. The data showed that the immune and targeted therapies after surgery were associated with increased survival without metastasis among these patients. Some...
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