Melanoma and Skin Cancer News Round Up: 06/10/2014

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• Are changes in fashion, tanning perceptions to blame for rising melanoma rates?

Rates of melanoma have been increasing for at least the past 30 years. Now, a new study published in the American Journal of Public Health claims a number of cultural and historical factors over the past 100 years, such as changes in fashion trends and social perceptions, have contributed to this increase.

Source: Medical News Today 

• Doctors explore social factors of melanoma

An increase in cases of melanoma over the past century may be attributed to a variety of social factors, according to a new study.

Source: Net Doctor

• New Standard in Melanoma: Combo of BRAF and MEK Inhibitors

For patients with advanced melanoma that is BRAF-mutation positive, the combination of a BRAF and MEK inhibitor works better than a BRAF inhibitor alone. The data come from 2 phase 3 trials presented here at the presidential session of the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress 2014.

Source: Medscape 

• Bristol immune drug shows strong effect in melanoma study

Bristol-Myers Squibb's immunotherapy drug Opdivo produced markedly improved response rates with fewer toxic side effects compared to chemotherapy in a major melanoma study, underscoring its potential as a new treatment option.

Source: Reuters 

• Immunotherapy Combinations in Advanced Melanoma

Limited options currently exist for patients with metastatic melanoma who do not have an actionable mutation. In these situations, ipilimumab can be administered as a single-agent, Jeffrey A. Sosman, MD, notes. Additionally, chemotherapy can be administered until a response is achieved followed by a switch to ipilimumab or interleuken-2.

Source: Onc Live 

• Australia the first country in the world to see decline in skin cancer rates

Australia is the first country in the world to show an improvement in skin cancer rates, with a small reduction in levels of melanoma and non-melanoma in the under-45 age group.

Source: The Guardian 

• Drugs combination could help skin cancer patients extend life

Treating patients suffering from the deadliest form of skin cancer with a combination of drugs could help extend their lives, research has suggested.

Source: Herald Scotland 

• Skin cancer patients given fresh hope with University of Manchester research breakthrough

Patients with the most dangerous form of skin cancer could benefit from new research.

Researchers have found that ‘calming down’ the signals from immune cells called macrophages can slow the growth of melanoma tumours.

Source: Manchester Evening News 

Melanoma and Skin Cancer News Round Up: 25/09/2014

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• Study: Telomere length impacts melanoma risk

Researchers with Dartmouth College have found that genes controlling telomere length of telomeres influence the risk of melanoma.

Source: Dermatology Times

• GSK melanoma pill backed by UK cost watchdog with price cut

Britain's healthcare cost agency NICE has recommended a third new drug for melanoma, this time from GlaxoSmithKline, after the drugmaker offered to supply it at a discount to the state-run National Health Service.

Source: Reuters

• New melanoma treatment approved by NICE

Dabrafenib will be the second melanoma drug targeting the BRAF V600 mutation to be available on the NHS after NICE approved vemurafenib in December 2012.

Source: Pharmaceutical Journal 

• 'A single mole caused cancer to spread through my body - now I only have months to live': Horror of man, 24, whose holiday sunburn led to life-threatening disease

A man has been given just months to live after learning a mole he developed while on holiday was in fact a rare form of cancer that has spread through his inner organs.

Source: Daily Mail

• Melanoma Could Be Caused By Ageing Genes; Best Diet For Anti-Ageing; Celebrities Who Have Aged Gracefully

A recent study by an international team of researchers found that ageing genes could play a role in melanoma, a type of skin cancer. It was found that genes that have the ability to control the length of telomeres, the caps at the end of the chromosomes, could be related to melanoma susceptability.

Source: ibtimes

• I thought I could beat anything. Then my doctor said: 'You have skin cancer': Bestselling author relives the most harrowing moment of her life

Bestselling author of Second Chance relives her most harrowing moment. Jane Green knew there was a risk as skin cancer ran in the family. She tells of the agonising wait to find out if the disease had spread.

Source: Daily Mail 

• Melanoma Institute’s groundbreaking cancer treatment gives Craig Lawn new lease on life

THERE is a high chance Craig Lawn would not be alive today if not for a world-first drugs trial which is revolutionising treatment for melanoma. In November last year, Mr Lawn was given six months to live after being diagnosed with inoperable, stage four melanoma.

Source: Daily Telegraph AU

• Skin cancer drug should be available on NHS, officials say

A new drug for skin cancer patients should be made widely available on the NHS, health officials have said.

Dabrafenib can have a "rapid positive effect" on patients with a certain type of melanoma, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) said.

Source: The Guardian

• Removing your tattoo 'can give you skin cancer'... and is almost as dangerous as tanning beds  

Removing your tattoo increases the risk of skin cancer and is as dangerous as lying on a tanning bed, according to an expert. Dr Ian McDougall, based on the Gold Coast Queensland, believes not enough information is given to patients who undergo the procedure and said the industry should be better regulated. 

Source: Daily Mail 

• Calming down immune cells could hold key to melanoma treatment

Cancer Research UK scientists at The University of Manchester found that chemical signals produced by a type of immune cell, called macrophages, also act as a survival signal for melanoma cells.

Source: Cancer Research UK 

Melanoma and Skin Cancer News Round Up: 12/09/2014

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• Study links genetic mutation and melanoma progression

Dartmouth researchers have found that the genetic mutation BRAFV600E, frequently found in metastatic melanoma, not only secretes a protein that promotes the growth of melanoma tumour cells, but can also modify the network of normal cells around the tumour to support the disease's progression. 

Source: Medical Xpress

• UNM creates new melanoma therapy

A promising new method to diagnose and treat melanoma is a step closer to market following a licensing agreement between an Albuquerque start-up and the University of New Mexico.

Source: ABQ Journal

• Skin cancer risks higher for soldiers serving abroad

A retrospective study of about 200 US military veterans has uncovered alarming statistics on soldiers deployed oversees being more at risk of developing melanoma and skin cancer.

Source: Vanderbilt

• Skipton firm licensed to help skin cancer detection rates

Early diagnosis and detection rates of skin cancer have been boosted by a pioneering digital application developed by academics.The Dermofit app which has been developed in the UK trains the medical profession to accurately identify malignant and benign skin lesion and skin growths at an earlier stage.

Source: Yorkshire Post

Melanoma and Skin Cancer News Round Up: 08/09/2014

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• Skin cancer cases double in 30 years but survival rates also rise

The BBC reports on new research from the Alan Lyell Centre for Dermatology in Glasgow which shows that skin cancer rates have doubled in the last 30 years but survival rates have also risen.

Source: BBC

• High-Risk Melanomas Often on Head or Neck, Study Finds

A look at a study published online (Aug. 20) in JAMA Dermatology by a research team led by Dr. Sarah Shen who investigated mitotic rates of melanomas in more than 1,400 patients. The article contains a number of comments on the study from well respected Dermatologists in the US.

Source: Philly

• Moles can quadruple risk of developing melanoma

A joint study by the University of Melbourne, University of Oxford and Epworth Healthcare states that having moles on your skin can quadruple your risk of developing melanoma. The research compared two groups of people 271,656 for whom moles had been recorded duringa  hospital visit for any condition - and 10,130,417 who did not have moles recorded. 

Source: Medical Xpress

• New techniques help curb advanced melanoma

A Canadian article exploring some of the modern methods of treatment for advanced melanoma.

Source: CBC

• Melanoma Is Not the Only Skin Cancer to Worry About

Researchers from Dundee University and Leiden University Medical Centre in the Netherlands presented their findings at the World Congress on Cancers of the Skin in Edinburgh last week. The study calculated that an average sunbed user, who tans for 12 minutes every eight days between the ages of 20 and 35 is 90% more likely to develop skin cancer by their 50s.

Source: Skin Inc

• New Melanomas Likely to Recur at Same Rate

A diagnosis of in situ or invasive melanoma conferred a similar long-term risk of invasive melanoma recurrence, a 40-year retrospective review showed.

Source: Med Page Today 

• US approves new immunotherapy drug against melanoma

A new drug by Merck pharmaceuticals called Keytruda that uses the body's immune system to fight metastatic melanoma was approved Thursday by US regulators.

Source: Yahoo 

• Sun visors for pilots as research shows high rates of skin cancer

Pilots could start wearing sunglasses or sun visors in the cockpit as a matter of course after new research pinpointed their exposure to sunlight as the likely cause of high rates of skin cancer.

Source: The Guardian

• Cancer warning: UK facing a 'tsunami of skin cancer'

Dermatologist Dr Walayat Hussain told BBC Breakfast that the UK was facing "a tsunami of skin cancer" as experts say cheap foreign holidays and the fashion for having tanned skin are probably to blame for the increase.

Source: BBC 

• I can't stop using sunbeds, even after getting skin cancer: Tan obsessed twin says she can't break the habit despite both her and her sister having health scares

A young woman who says she's addicted to sunbeds admits even getting skin cancer hasn't put her off tanning.

Lucy Simm, 29, from Morecambe, was keen to get back on a sunbed as soon as she had recovered from an operation to remove a cancerous mole on her leg. The woman told her story on ITV's This Morning along with her twin sister who has also been diagnosed with skin cancer.

Source: Daily Mail  

Melanoma and Skin Cancer News Round Up: 22/08/2014

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• High-Risk Melanomas Often on Head or Neck

An investigation by Australian researchers measuring the speed at with cancer cells grow may help doctors diagnose and treat the most aggressive of Melanomas. 

Source: WebMD

• Teens aren’t using sunscreen as much: Are melanoma warnings not enough?

The Tech Times takes a look at research originating from William Paterson University in New Jersey which has shown that the number of high school students using sunscreen dropped from 67.7% to 56.1% between 2001 and 2011 in the United States.

Source: Tech Times

• The skin cancer that killed Bob Marley not caused by sun, scientists say

UK scientists have found that acral melanoma - which caused the death of Bob Marley is genetically distinct from other more common types of skin cancer. Unlike other more common types of melanoma, it's not caused by excessive exposure to UV rays.

Source: Express 

• Digital surveillance, photography aided early melanoma diagnosis

A study from the University of Sydney has revealed that surveillance with total body photography and sequential digital dermoscopy imaging helped improve early detection of primary melanomas. 

Source: Healio

• Dermtech Offers A Simple Way to Detect Melanoma

An article describing a new technique of diagnosing skin cancer using adhesive tape. Developed by Dermtech, the article states that the adhesive tape can be used as an alternative to a biopsy. 

Source: NanAlyze 

• VIDEO: Advanced melanoma on brink of immunotherapy ‘revolution’

A video interview with Dr. Steven O'Day of the Beverly Hills Cancer Centre at the the annual meeting of the American Society for Clinical Oncology on the latest developments in melanoma treatment options.

Source: Oncology Practice 

• Smartphones Cut Melanoma Treatment Time 

Research carried out by Swedish scientists has found that using smartphones equipped with a microscope allows physicians to photograph potential melanomas and send the results on to specialists for further assesment will help to cut treatment time.

Source: Clinical Oncology 

• Training the body to fight melanoma

A new experimental therapy claims to be able to train the body's immune system to fight skin cancer.

Source: My Sun Coast

• Pregnant 'tanorexic' is diagnosed with skin cancer after tiny blemish on her nose turns into 'rodent ulcer'

The Daily Mail has a story on a regular sun bed user who was diagnosed with melanoma.

Source: Daily Mail 

• Brits are 'ignorant' of sunburn risks, poll reveals

Worrying research from Macmillan Cancer Support as it reports that many British citizens aren't aware of the risks associated with sunburn. The study showed that 22% of Brits polled were unaware that you can get sunburn through a window.

Source: ITV 

• Higher UV radiation linked to increased prevalence of nonmelanoma skin cancers

A higher mean daily UV radiation has been linked with increased nonmelanoma skin cancer incidence rates, according to findings gathered after researchers systematically reviewed 40 peer-reviewed articles published from 1978 to 2012 that provided age and sex-specific and incidence data for non melanoma skin cancers in white populations worldwide. 

Source: Healio 

Melanoma and Skin Cancer News Round Up: 15/08/2014

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• Expert’s Corner: How zebrafish are helping to unlock melanoma genetics

A video on how researchers are using Zebrahfish to study melanoma skin cancer. The researchers from the University of Massachusetts are using the fish to identify genes responsible for melanoma , with the hope of identifying new targets for potential treatments.

Source: University of Massachusetts Medical School

• Multispectral digital skin lesion analysis reduces unnecessary biopsies for melanoma

A multispectral digital device could help to analyse patients pigmented skin lesions and may assist in reducing the number of unnecessary skin biopsies according to the American Academy of Dermatology Summer Meeting. 

Source: Healio 

• Immune Cell Discovery Could Help to Halt Cancer Spread

The Bio Science site reports that Melbourne researchers have revealed the importance of highly specialized immune cells, called natural killer cells, in killing melanoma cells that have spread to the lungs. The cells could be harnessed to hunt down and destroy cancers that have spread through the body.

Source: Bio Science 

• Handheld photoacoustic microscopy device could enable deeper melanoma imaging

Washington University researchers based in St.Louis have developed a handheld photoacoustic microscopy device that can be used directly on patients and accurately measure how deep a melanoma tumour extends into the skin, providing valuable information for treatment, diagnosis and prevention.

Source: Bio Optics World 

• New Melanomas Likely to Recur at Same Rate

A 40 year retrospective review has showed that a diagnosis of in-situ or invasive melanoma conferred a similar long-term risk of invasive melanoma recurrence. 

Source: Med Page Today 

• 'I lost my eye to skin cancer because cheap holiday sunglasses gave me no protection'

The 'Daily Mirror' has a personal story about how fake sunglasses without adequate UV protection led to a British woman being diagnosed with melanoma behind her right eye.

Source: Mirror 

• Does Skin Cancer Itch?

A Q&A with New York Dermatologist Janet Prystowsky on a study originating from Temple University School of Medicine that reports that 37% of skin cancer lesions are accompanied by itching. 

Source: Allure 

• Treating Sunburn

A number of articles on treating sunburn. You should always remember that prevention is the best treatment.

Source: Mens Journal/Vogue/Daily Star 

Melanoma and Skin Cancer News Round Up: 08/08/14

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• Photoacoustic device aids management of melanomas

Researchers working out of  Washington University in St.Louis in the United States have developed a new piece of hand held technology which utilises lasers and sound waves to help doctors diagnose melanoma skin cancer.

Source: The Engineer

• Specific genetic defect may increase melanoma susceptibility

A study that has come out of the University of Kentucky's Markey Cancer Centre published in 'Molecular Cell' has shown that a genetic defect in a specific hormonal pathway may make people more susceptible to developing melanoma.

Source: Oncology Advisor

• Surgical treatment for metastatic melanoma of the liver increases overall survival

New research from the John Wayne Cancer Institute in Santa Monica, California has revealed that surgical treatment metastatic melanoma of the liver increases overall survival. These results show a departure from the previous thought that melanoma is often considered fatal once it has spread to the liver.

Source: Oncology Advisor

• Generation of tanners see spike in deadly melanoma

The acting US Surgeon general has delivered a start warning to Americans as it was reported that there has been a jump of 200% in melanoma cases since 1973. The surgeon general urged those residing in the United States to stop sunbathing and using indoor tanning beds.

Source: Desert Sun

• Too much sun? This £1 wristband will tell you...Bracelet could help prevent skin cancer

The Smartsun band changes colour when exposed to damaging UV levels and could help users tell when they've had enough. If your interested in the bands please get in touch with us at info@masscot.org.uk and we can provide you with more details on them and a cost.

Source: Express

• E-jewellery to prevent sunburn

A new piece of technology which works with iOS devices such as iphone's and ipad's has been created by Netatmo. It's a small jewel shaped sensor which pairs with your devices and reads the UV index and provides advice as to what you should be wearing to ensure your protected during the day.

Source: The Hindu