Improving patient outcomes to targeted therapies in melanoma

Abstract

Introduction: The arrival of targeted therapies has led to significant improvements in clinical outcomes for patients with BRAFV600 mutated advanced melanoma over the past five years.

Areas covered: In several clinical trials, BRAF and MEK inhibitors have shown improvement in progression free and overall survival, along with much higher tumor response rates in comparison to chemotherapy, with the combination of these drugs superior to monotherapy. These agents are also being tested in earlier-stage patients, in addition to alternative dosing regimens and in combinations with other therapeutics. Efforts are also ongoing to expand the success found with targeted therapies to other subtypes of melanoma, including NRAS and c-kit mutated melanomas, uveal melanomas, and BRAF/NRAS wild type melanomas. Expert Commentary: We aim to provide an overview of clinical outcomes with targeted therapies in melanoma patients.

Keywords: BRAF; MEK; Melanoma; NRAS; combination therapy; targeted therapy.