Cancers, Vol. 13, Pages 1115: Resistance to Molecularly Targeted Therapies in Melanoma

Cancers, Vol. 13, Pages 1115: Resistance to Molecularly Targeted Therapies in Melanoma Cancers doi: 10.3390/cancers13051115 Authors: Meet Patel Adam Eckburg Shahina Gantiwala Zachary Hart Joshua Dein Katie Lam Neelu Puri Malignant melanoma is the most aggressive type of skin cancer with invasive growth patterns. In 2021, 106,110 patients are projected to be diagnosed with melanoma, out of which 7180 are expected to die. Traditional methods like surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy are not effective in the treatment of metastatic and advanced melanoma. Recent approaches to treat melanoma have focused on biomarkers that play significant roles in cell growth, proliferation, migration, and survival. Several FDA-approved molecular targeted therapies such as tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) have been developed against genetic biomarkers whose overexpression is implicated in tumorigenesis. The use of targeted therapies as an alternative or supplement to immunotherapy has revolutionized the management of metastatic melanoma. Although this treatment strategy is more efficacious and less toxic in comparison to traditional therapies, targeted therapies are less effective after prolonged treatment due to acquired resistance caused by mutations and activation of alternative mechanisms in melanoma tumors. Recent studies focus on understanding the mechanisms of acquired resistance to these current therapies. Further research is needed for the development of bett...
Source: Cancers - Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Tags: Review Source Type: research