Research into the causes, prevention, and treatment of melanoma is going on in many medical centers around the world.

Causes and prevention

Sunlight and UV radiation

Recent studies suggest there may be 2 ways that UV rays causes melanoma. The first way is linked to a lot of sun exposure and sunburns as a child or teenager. This early sun exposure starts a change in skin cells that may later turn into melanoma. Some doctors think this accounts for melanomas that start on the legs and trunk -- areas that aren't often exposed to the sun in adulthood.

The second link is to melanomas that start on the arms, neck, and face. These areas are often exposed to sun, particularly in men. Tanning booths may also help these kinds of melanomas develop.

Public education

Most skin cancer can be prevented. You can do this by avoiding too much sun exposure and protecting yourself and your children when you are in the sun. Don't forget that sunscreen should be used to protect skin from the sun's rays during normal activity. It should not be used to allow you to spend more time in the sun.

It is also important to find melanoma early, when it is most likely to be completely cured. Check your skin every month and be aware of the warning signs of melanoma.

The American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) sponsors free skin cancer screenings around the country every year. Many local ACS offices work with the ADD to help with these screenings. Their phone number and Internet address are listed in the “How can I learn more?” section.

DNA research

Scientists have made a lot of progress during the past few years in learning how UV light harms DNA. Changes in DNA can cause normal skin cells to become cancer. People who have a strong family history of melanoma should talk to a cancer genetic counselor or a doctor who knows about cancer genetics to discuss the benefits and possible drawbacks to genetic testing.

Staging

Advances in research are also being applied to staging the cancer. Very sensitive new tests can better find the spread of melanoma to lymph nodes. One type of test can find one melanoma cell among a million normal cells. This might help identify some patients who could be helped with treatments like immunotherapy after surgery. But some doctors worry that this test can sometimes suggest that a person has cancer when they really don't. So for now the test is only being used in research studies.

Treatment

Immune therapy

New ways of working with the immune system to fight cancer are being studied. Researchers are working on vaccines aimed at making a person immune to his or her melanoma cells. Another method is to train a person's immune cells to attack the melanoma cells.

Other forms of immunotherapy are also being studied. A recent small study showed that treating patients with immune system cells found in tumors could shrink melanoma tumors and possibly prolong life, too. Another study found that a type of white blood cell (T cells) that had their genes altered in the lab could cause tumors to shrink in a small number of patients. More studies of these treatments are being done.

Molecular targeting

New drugs that attack genes that are not normal are being studied. One example is a gene called BRAF. This gene is abnormal in most melanoma cells. Drugs that target the activity of this gene are being developed and studied in clinical trials.

Gene therapy

One of the most promising new ideas in treating melanoma involves adding certain genes to the cancer cells. There are different ways that adding these genes can help to fight the cancer. Clinical trials testing gene therapy are going on now.

Last Medical Review: 07/01/2008
Last Revised: 05/06/2009