Trial Shows Benefits to Immediate Lymph Node Dissection in Some Melanoma Cases

Positive SLNB patients with intermediate thickness melanoma and metastatic disease to regional nodes may have a survival benefit if they receive immediate lymph node dissection. This approach may be preferable when disease in regional nodes becomes clinically palpable, says John F. Thompson M.D., professor of surgery, University of Sydney, and executive director of the Melanoma Institute Australia, Sydney. More...

Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy Appropriate for Certain Thin Melanomas

Sentinel lymph node (SLN) status represents the most important prognostic factor for disease-specific survival in primary cutaneous melanomas, said Christopher K. Bichakjian, M.D., associate professor, cutaneous surgery and oncology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. More...

Novel Melanoma Therapies Portend a 'Golden Age' of Cancer Care

Newly approved drugs such as vemurafenib and ipilimumab are creating a "game-changing" era for treatment of metastatic melanoma, according to Adil Daud, M.D., co-director, Melanoma Program, University of California, San Francisco. More...

Radiotherapy Boosts Efficacy of Ipilimumab in Metastatic Melanoma

As researchers continue to study the effects of adjunctive therapies with ipilimumab, a recent report suggests radiotherapy may increase its efficacy, according to Michael A. Postow, M.D., medical oncology fellow, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York. More...