Melanoma Skin Cancer News

Melanoma Cases Rising in U.S. Feb. 18, 2020 -- Cases of melanoma in the United States increased 2% a year between 2005 and 2015, and will likely rise from 96,000 cases in 2019 to 151,000 cases in 2030 if the trend continues, a new study says.The researchers noted that most cases of melanoma -- the deadliest type of skin cancer -- in the United States are linked with ultraviolet radiation exposure from "excessive sun exposure and indoor tanning," CNN reported.UV exposure accounted for 91% of all melanoma cases diagnosed in the United States from 2011 to 2015,

Getting a second opinion from a pathologist specially trained in skin lesions -- a dermatopathologist -- yields the most accurate results, the new study found.

Researchers found that the incidence of head and neck melanoma rose nearly 4% a year from 1995 to 2001, and 1.2% a year from 2001 to 2014 in children and young adults.

The study of around 125,000 Americans found that people with the highest intake of vitamin A lowered their risk of squamous cell skin cancer by around 15%

The researchers have been developing a laser-based system designed to screen patients' blood from the outside -- spotting tumor cells as they pass through veins in the arm and eliminating the need for a blood draw.

Overall, about seven out of 10 sunscreen recipes failed to adequately protect skin from dangerous ultraviolet (UV) rays, the study authors found.

As melanoma cases continue to rise sharply, some dermatologists question whether screening people without symptoms has resulted in overdiagnosing melanoma, bringing unnecessary anxiety and treatments.

Experts are quick to say the known risk from the sun's rays is greater than the potential risk posed by these chemicals. Keep using your sunscreen.

The rankings include sections for best sprays, sticks and lip balms as well as those products considered safe for coral reefs.

A two-ointment combo used to clear crusty skin growths known as actinic keratosis also has been found to greatly reduce the odds for squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs), the second most common form of skin cancer.

New research suggests that a diet that's full of fiber appears to lead to more diverse intestinal bacteria (microbiome). In turn, a thriving gut microbiome is linked to a stronger response to an immune therapy for the aggressive skin cancer.

Keytruda is the drug responsible for the remission of former President Jimmy Carter's cancer in 2015. Carter, then 90, had melanoma that spread to his brain and liver. Treatment with Keytruda appears to have cured him.

In a study of more than 700 melanoma patients in the United Kingdom, smokers were 40 percent less likely to survive melanoma than people who hadn't smoked for at least 10 years before their diagnosis.

Powered by the sun while designed to measure its rays, the patch automatically transmits sun readings to a user's smartphone. It works wet or dry, is fully reusable, and weighs next to nothing.

Melanoma death rates were higher for men than for women, according to an analysis of World Health Organization data from 33 countries between 1985 and 2015.

Contrary to the usual advice, a new study has found that, unless applied very heavily, skin creams did not raise the radiation dose to the skin during cancer treatment.

Two cancer researchers -- James P. Allison, PhD, of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, and Tasuku Honjo, MD, PhD, of Kyoto University in Japa-- received the 2018 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for discovering how the immune system can be harnessed to attack tumor cells, a finding that led to the development of immunotherapy drugs.

Experts said the findings represent another step forward against advanced melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer. Once melanoma spreads to distant sites in the body, the prognosis has traditionally been grim. When it infiltrates the brain, the typical life expectancy has hovered around four to five months.

HPV Shot Rids 97-Year-Old of Advanced Skin Cancer By Alan MosesHealthDay Reporter TUESDAY, July 17, 2018 (HealthDay News) -- Two years ago, Ian McKenzie thought his mom's remaining days were dwindling.The 97-year-old woman had developed a severe case of what was thought to be an untreatable form of squamous cell carcinoma, the second leading form of skin cancer.Lesions had developed over much of her right leg, in such numbers and size that chemotherapy and surgery were ruled out as treatments.On a hunch, her doctor, Dr. Anna Nichols of the University of Miami's Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center,

Immune Therapy May Help Melanoma in the Brain By Robert PreidtHealthDay Reporter THURSDAY, July 12, 2018 (HealthDay News) -- A type of therapy that harnesses the immune system is giving new hope to people battling a once hopeless cancer -- melanoma that's spread to the brain.New research involving more than 2,700 U.S. patients is confirming what specialists in the field have long known -- that "checkpoint blockade" treatment can beat back these devastating tumors."Physicians who treat patients with melanoma brain metastases have seen first-hand the dramatic improvements in survival that immunotherapy can achieve," said one such specialist,

The new study included just over 200 college students. The researchers  enlisted a computer program called "APRIL Age Progression Software," which was developed over the course of a five-year facial analysis involving 7,000 people representing various races, ages and lifestyles.

The new study pitted a well-honed computer algorithm against 58 dermatologists, to see whether machine or humans were better at differentiating melanomas from moles.

SPF, or sun protection factor, is a measure of how long sunscreen protects you from radiation from the sun that can damage your skin. Dermatologists may recommend natural sunscreens for children and others with sensitive skin.

The drug also gained attention after former President Jimmy Carter announced in 2015 that Keytruda had beaten back his brain cancer.

This recommendation, from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, updates a 2012 recommendation that advised doctors not begin this education until children reached the age of 10.