Melanoma & Skin Cancer

The BLA seeking the approval of denileukin diftitox in patients with relapsed/refractory cutaneous T-cell lymphoma was resubmitted to the FDA.

In the treatment of unresectable or metastatic Merkel cell carcinoma, immune checkpoint inhibitors have activity and tolerability.

Paul D. Nathan, MBBS, PhD, FRCP, discusses the clinical significance of updated data on tebentafusp in metastatic uveal melanoma.

Adjuvant nivolumab significantly improved relapse-free survival vs ipilimumab in resected stage III/IV melanoma, according to 7-year minimum follow-up.

Preferentially expressed antigen in melanoma has emerged as a target for treatment development in multiple solid tumors.

Jeffrey S. Weber, MD, PhD, discusses the background for the KEYNOTE-942 trial, which was conducted in resected high-risk melanoma.

Oncologists reviewed data from clinical trials in the field of melanoma that could add clarity to treatment standards and lead to improved patient care.

The initiation of immunotherapy at the end of life among patients with advanced cancers is increasing over time.

Jeffrey S. Weber, MD, PhD, expands on the potential utility of longitudinal ctDNA dynamics as a kinetic marker for clinical outcomes in melanoma.

Neil D. Gross, MD, FACS, shares how neoadjuvant cemiplimab followed by surgery improved EFS in patients with stage II-IV cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma.

Patricia A. Possik, PhD, discusses the importance of efforts to improve diversity, equity, and inclusion in melanoma research.

Lifileucel demonstrated clinically meaningful antitumor activity alongside early, durable responses in patients with advanced melanoma following progression on checkpoint inhibitors.

Intravenous and intratumoral treatment with TILT-123 was found to be safe and feasible, with no dose-limiting toxicities when given alone or in combination with tumor infiltrating lymphocyte therapy in patients with advanced, metastatic melanoma.

The panel concludes their discussion with a call for continued research and collaboration, emphasizing the need for more understanding of targeted therapies, monitoring tools like ctDNA, and ongoing development in the field of BRAF mutant melanoma treatment.

Doctors discuss the effectiveness of different treatment combinations for patients with BRAF-mutated metastatic melanoma and brain metastases, highlighting that consideration of patient preferences is essential in making treatment decisions.

Experts discuss treatment of patients with BRAF-mutated melanoma and symptomatic brain metastases, detailing radiation therapy, corticosteroid use, and the choice between BRAF/MEK inhibitor therapy and immunotherapy.

For patients with BRAF-mutated melanoma with asymptomatic brain metastases, immunotherapy, particularly the combination of ipilimumab and nivolumab, is the preferred treatment option due to its effectiveness and durability, as supported by the seven-year follow-up data from the CHECKMATE 204 trial.

Treatment with SD-101 distributed via pressure-enabled drug delivery with immune checkpoint inhibition was tolerated and resulted in the depletion of Tregs, M-MDSCs, and M2 macrophages in liver metastases in patients with uveal melanoma.

The FDA has issued a complete response letter to the biologic license application seeking the approval of cosibelimab for use in patients with metastatic or locally advanced cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma who are not eligible for curative surgery or radiation.

The tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte cell therapy OBX-115 produced responses with no dose-limiting toxicities in heavily pretreated patients with advanced or metastatic melanoma whose who had progressed on anti–PD-1 and anti–CTLA-4 therapy with disease that was primary-resistant to immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy.

The FDA has granted fast track designation to naporafenib plus trametinib for use as a potential therapeutic option in adult patients with unresectable or metastatic melanoma with an NRAS mutation who progressed on or are intolerant to a PD-1/PD-L1–based regimen.

The combination of RP1 and cemiplimab provided a numerical, but not statistically significant, improvement in response rates vs cemiplimab alone in patients with locally advanced or metastatic cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, missing the primary end points of the phase 2 CERPASS trial.

Panelists discuss the potential benefits of rechallenging patients with BRAF-mutated metastatic melanoma with BRAF/MEK inhibitors after a break from treatment, especially for those who initially responded well, and emphasizing the success of this approach in some cases, while highlighting the importance of monitoring and utilizing ctDNA tracking for more informed decision-making.

The 7-year follow-up data for encorafenib/binimetinib showing that around 21% of patients remained progression-free supports BRAF/MEK inhibition as a later treatment option after immunotherapy failure, but doctors are reluctant to stop BRAF/MEK inhibitors given lack of data, even in those patients doing well long-term on the medications with minimal toxicity.

The panel explains which BRAF/MEK inhibitor combination therapy they each tend to turn to when treating a patient with BRAF-mutated metastatic melanoma.