Melanoma medical therapy

Adjuvant treatment
High risk melanomas may require referral to a medical or surgical oncologist for adjuvant treatment. In the United States most patients in otherwise good health will begin up to a year of high-dose interferon treatment, which has severe side effects, but may improve the patients' prognosis. This claim is not supported by all research at this time and in Europe interferon is usually not used outside the scope of clinical trials.

Metastatic melanomas can be detected by X-rays, CT scans, MRIs, PET and PET/CTs, ultrasound, LDH testing and photoacoustic detection.

Chemotherapy and immunotherapy
Various chemotherapy agents are used, including dacarbazine (also termed DTIC), immunotherapy (with interleukin-2 (IL-2) or interferon (IFN)) as well as local perfusion are used by different centers. They can occasionally show dramatic success, but the overall success in metastatic melanoma is quite limited. IL-2 (Proleukin®) is the first new therapy approved for the treatment of metastatic melanoma in 20 years. Studies have demonstrated that IL-2 offers the possibility of a complete and long-lasting remission in this disease, although only in a small percentage of patients. A number of new agents and novel approaches are under evaluation and show promise.

Lentigo maligna treatment
Some superficial melanomas (lentigo maligna) have resolved with an experimental treatment, imiquimod (Aldara®) topical cream, an immune enhancing agent. Application of this cream has been shown to decrease tumor size prior to surgery, reducing the invasiveness of the procedure. This treatment is used especially for smaller melanoma in situ lesions located in cosmetically sensitive regions. Several published studies demonstrate a 70% cure rate with this topical treatment. With lentigo maligna, surgical cure rates are no higher. Some dermasurgeons are combining the 2 methods: surgically excise the cancer, then treat the area with Aldara® cream post-operatively for 3 months.

Radiation and other therapies
Radiation therapy is often used after surgical resection for patients with locally or regionally advanced melanoma or for patients with unresectable distant metastases. It may reduce the rate of local recurrence but does not prolong survival.

In research setting other therapies, such as gene therapy, may be tested. Radioimmunotherapy of metastatic melanoma is currently under investigation. Experimental treatment developed at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health in the US was used in advanced (metastatic) melanoma with moderate success. The treatment, adoptive transfer of genetically altered autologous lymphocytes, depends on delivering genes that encode so called T cell receptors (TCRs), into patient's lymphocytes. After that manipulation lymphocytes recognize and bind to certain molecules found on the surface of melanoma cells and kill them.