Immunotherapy highly effective in treatment of rare skin cancer, study finds

FINDINGSIn a UCLA-led study, more than two-thirds of people with a rare type of melanoma responded positively to treatment with anti-PD-1 immunotherapies. The findings, which counter the conventional wisdom that a cancer which is highly fibrotic could not respond to immunotherapy, have the potential to help scientists identify those patients most likely to benefit from treatment.BACKGROUNDDesmoplastic melanoma is an uncommon subtype of melanoma that has proven highly resistant to traditional treatment approaches, such as chemotherapy, radiation and surgery. Desmoplastic melanoma tumors have a very dense tissue thought to limit the ability of immune cells to infiltrate and attack the cancer. They are also characterized by a lack of “driver” mutations, which are required for drug development and personalized medicine strategies. These factors had previously led scientists to consider people with desmoplastic melanoma and other dense cancers as unlikely to benefit from immunotherapy.UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer CenterDr. Antoni RibasAnti-PD-1 antibodies target the protein PD-1, which is expressed by immune cells. When PD-1 binds to another molecule called PD-L1, it protects the cancer cells from immune cell attack. So, by blocking the interaction between PD-1 and PD-L1, anti-PD-1 antibodies unleash the patient's immune system to attack the cancer. Research has shown that anti-PD-1 antibodies, such as the drugs pembrolizumab and nivolumab, are effective for the treatment...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news