Comparing Treatment and Survival of Patients with Melanoma Brain Metastases
-
- STATUS
- Not Recruiting
Summary
Melanoma is an aggressive cancer that tends to affect young adults disproportionately. One of the main causes of mortality in patients with advanced melanoma is spread to the brain. Immunotherapy, treatments to stimulate the immune system to recognize and eliminate cancer cells, has shown promise in increasing survival in patients with metastatic melanoma, however this therapy has not been tested in patients with brain metastasis. The immunotherapies in clinical trials are directed toward blocking the interaction between T-cells (immune cells) and tumor cells which would allow the T-cells to be activated to kill the tumor cells. This interaction involves binding of a molecule called PD-1 on T-cells with a molecule called PD-L1 on melanoma cells. PD-1 is found on T-cells in the blood stream and PD-L1 is found on melanoma outside of the brain, however it is unknown if there are T-cells in melanoma tumors that have spread to the brain or if melanoma brain tumors express PD-L1. In order to answer those two questions we will stain for the above markers in tissue from patients with melanoma brain metastases resected in the last 10 years at Indiana University. These clinical samples will be requested from the department of Pathology. Comparing the survival and treatment status of patients who had immunotherapy and other treatments and correlating it to expression of the above markers will improve our understanding of melanoma brain metastases.
Description
Melanoma is an aggressive cancer that tends to affect young adults disproportionately. One of the main causes of mortality in patients with advanced melanoma is spread to the brain. Immunotherapy, treatments to stimulate the immune system to recognize and eliminate cancer cells, has shown promise in increasing survival in patients with metastatic melanoma, however this therapy has not been tested in patients with brain metastasis. The immunotherapies in clinical trials are directed toward blocking the interaction between T-cells (immune cells) and tumor cells which would allow the T-cells to be activated to kill the tumor cells. This interaction involves binding of a molecule called PD-1 on T-cells with a molecule called PD-L1 on melanoma cells. PD-1 is found on T-cells in the blood stream and PD-L1 is found on melanoma outside of the brain, however it is unknown if there are T-cells in melanoma tumors that have spread to the brain or if melanoma brain tumors express PD-L1. In order to answer those two questions we will stain for the above markers in tissue from patients with melanoma brain metastases resected in the last 10 years at Indiana University. These clinical samples will be requested from the department of Pathology. Comparing the survival and treatment status of patients who had immunotherapy and other treatments and correlating it to expression of the above markers will improve our understanding of melanoma brain metastases.
Details
| Condition | melanoma |
|---|---|
| Age | 100years or below |
| Clinical Study Identifier | TX8369 |
| Last Modified on | 19 February 2024 |
Similar trials to consider
Not finding what you're looking for?
Sign up as a volunteer to stay informed
Every year hundreds of thousands of volunteers step forward to participate in research. Sign up as a volunteer and receive email notifications when clinical trials are posted in the medical category of interest to you.
Sign up as volunteerStudy Definition
WikipediaAdd a private note
- Select a piece of text.
- Add notes visible only to you.
- Send it to people through a passcode protected link.