One of the deadliest cancers melanoma may now be treated, thanks to the following discovery. Investigators have apparently developed a new drug known as PLX4032 for shrinking metastatic melanoma tumors. This medication possibly targets melanoma and other cancers harboring the BRAF V600 mutation.
During the investigation, 132 patients confirming a response rate of 52 percent were examined. While three confirmed complete responses (CR) had no probable evidence of the cancer and 66 confirmed partial responses (PR) had tumor shrinkage of at least than 30 percent, 39 patients were registered with stable disease. Jeffrey Sosman, M.D., director of the Melanoma Program at Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center, and colleagues compared the median progression-free survival (PFS) to historical PFS of less than two months.
Along with a 6.8 month median duration of response, the overall survival median has not yet been reached. On completion of the research, the drug allegedly reduced tumor and is capable of highlighting a true paradigm shift in the treatment of melanoma. Attempts will be made to provide personalized medicine for melanoma patients.
The research was presented at the International Melanoma Research Congress of the Society for Melanoma Research in Sydney, Australia.