Immunotherapy extends survival by a decade for half of stage IV melanoma patients

Immunotherapy has extended survival by 10 years or more for half of people with stage IV melanoma, ORF reports, as a dermatology congress opens in Vienna.

Researchers are developing mRNA vaccines in the hope of improving outcomes for people with melanoma, also known as black skin cancer. The vaccine is designed to prevent a recurrence rather than treat an existing melanoma, said Christian Posch, head of the dermatology departments at Klinik Hietzing and Klinik Ottakring, two hospitals. It is tailored to each patient using tissue taken from the melanoma and can be produced within six weeks. The vaccine is currently in the third phase of clinical trials, and early results appear positive, Posch said.

Immunotherapy has transformed melanoma treatment since 2011. Before then, chemotherapy was the only alternative, but was very ineffective for skin cancer, Posch said. Antibody drugs used in immunotherapy allow the body’s immune system to attack cancer cells again. Tumour cells can develop mechanisms to protect themselves from the immune system.

Posch said nearly one in two people over 60 develops white skin cancer, caused by ultraviolet damage to the outer layer of the skin. He advised people to avoid sunburn and excessive tanning, including through sunbeds or sunbathing on a balcony or in a garden.

The European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology congress runs from Wednesday to Saturday at the Austria Center Vienna. More than 170 programme sessions are scheduled for dermatologists at different stages of their careers.