New Hope for Melanoma Patients

While early intervention is still the best hope for skin cancer melanoma patients, a new drug was recently approved that gives hope to late-stage melanoma sufferers. Yervoy was recently approved by the FDA as the first drug shown to extend the life of late-stage skin cancer patients by several months. Despite the high cost ($120,00o for a 3 month session) and potentially dangerous side effects, many patients and doctors are excited about this new hope for the fight against skin cancer. There are several other drugs in the testing phase that hope to deliver the same, or better, results but Yervoy is the first to get FDA approval. There were about 68,000 new cases of melanoma in the United States just last year and 8700 deaths. While early stage melanoma, in the form of a mole, can be removed and treated with successful results, late stage melanoma that has already metastasized, or spread, has been virtually unresponsive to most existing drugs on the market. While it is still relatively unknown how much Yervoy will help to extend patients' lives at this point, the early results are very promising. In the meantime, the best defense against all skin cancer is prevention. Practicing sun safe habits throughout your life and teaching your children to do the same. Sunscreen, sun protective clothing, sun hats and sunglasses help protect your skin from the sun's UV damage. In addition, keep an eye on all changes to moles or new moles and visit a dermatologist once every 2-3 years for a professional skin exam.