Skin cancer is diagnosed in 200,000 people a year, with about 70,000 of them dying. According to statistics, these numbers continue to grow rapidly. Based on this, we can conclude that existing methods of treating the disease are not effective enough. To save thousands of lives, the creation and implementation of other ways to fight cancer is necessary. So, a fundamentally new method is immunotherapy for melanoma. This will be discussed below.
First you need to figure out what kind of disease it is, why it occurs and what is being treated at present.
Disease concept
Melanoma is an oncological disease of the skin arising from pigment cells. These cells are responsible for the production of melanin in the body - a natural pigment of a dark color. A person’s color type depends on its quantitative content in the body.
In half of the cases, melanoma is formed on the legs, in 1/3 - on the arms and trunk, the remaining percentage falls on the neck and face.
About 65% of all tumors are a degenerate mole.
Causes of Melanoma
- The most common cause of tumor development is exposure to ultraviolet radiation. About 90% of all diseases are caused by this particular factor. Excessively long exposure to the sun without protection for the skin, as well as frequent visits to tanning salons can serve as an impetus for the onset of a malignant process in the body.
- The hereditary factor also plays a significant role. People whose first-line relatives (parents, siblings) suffered from cancer are at risk. They especially need to carefully monitor their health and regularly undergo preventive medical examinations.
Treatment methods
The main methods of anti-cancer therapy are of three types:
- Surgery. The priority method of therapy at all stages of the disease, when the tumor is still operable. Under general anesthesia, the surgeon performs a wide excision of the neoplasm with the capture of healthy tissues. This is done in order to prevent the development of relapse. In addition, not only skin is removed, but also adipose and muscle tissue, as well as ligaments and others.
- Chemotherapy. May be prescribed as the main treatment method or in addition to surgery. These drugs have anticancer activity and are able to destroy the tumor. The most commonly used products are Cisplatin, Karmustin, Vincristine.
- Radiation therapy. This method is widely used in oncological practice, and skin cancer is no exception. Using exposure to the tumor with gamma rays can deprive its ability to grow and multiply. Radiation therapy can be used at all stages of the disease, up to 4 stages. As a rule, the patient is prescribed several courses in a row with short breaks between them.
Forecast
Despite the existence of different treatments for melanoma, the prognosis of patients is not very favorable, and people continue to die from cancer.
A high survival rate only in the first (95%) and second (75%) stages.
In the third stage, when the tumor metastasizes to regional lymph nodes, half of the patients manage to defeat the insidious disease. If several lymph nodes are affected at once, only one in four survives.
At the last stage, when secondary malignant lesions affected even distant organs, the prognosis is extremely unfavorable (mortality reaches 92%).
All this makes scientists and doctors look for new ways to fight malignant diseases.
So, the method of immunotherapy of a sick body has become fundamentally new. The main advantage is the possibility of treatment at any stage of the disease.
Immunotherapy for melanoma. What it is?
Immunotherapy is the treatment of a cancer patient using drugs that have the ability to adjust immunity, that is, the body's defenses. All this allows you to stop the growth of the tumor, as well as prevent the occurrence of its relapse.
Due to the fact that the method is just beginning to be introduced into medicine, it is difficult to unequivocally answer whether immunotherapy is effective for melanoma. However, the statistics that are available now confirm the high anticancer activity of these drugs.
Like any other therapeutic agent, immunotherapy drugs for melanoma can cause a number of undesirable side reactions. However, they are not as pronounced as during chemotherapy.
These include:
- Nausea, vomiting.
- Pain in the abdomen.
- Slight numbness of limbs.
- Cramps.
- Depression, apathy.
And is it worth paying attention to side effects if taking the drug can save a life?
A large number of drugs have been discovered that are used for the immune treatment of cancer, but immunotherapy for melanoma most often uses such drugs, the main active components of which are interferon-alpha and interleukin-2.
Interferon alfa
Its use is especially advisable after surgery to remove the underlying tumor. Immunotherapy with interferon for melanoma helps prevent relapse and the spread of metastases.
The drug has a number of functions:
- Suppresses the proliferation (division) of malignant cells.
- Prevents the inclusion of healthy cells and tissues in the tumor, thereby stopping its growth.
- Responsible for the activation of immune cells. Such as:
- macrophages - are responsible for the capture and destruction of any foreign and toxic cells;
- T-lymphocytes - activate cellular and humoral immunity.
The most relevant tool for immunotherapy for stage 2 melanoma, as well as at the very beginning of the disease.
The treatment regimen and dosage regimen are selected only by the oncologist individually for each patient. However, any scheme for taking interferon has one thing in common - first large doses are prescribed for the first four weeks, then the amount of the drug is reduced to maintenance values.
The drug is effective in treating skin cancer of any kind. In particular, immunotherapy for epithelioid melanoma with the help of interferon-based drugs significantly increases the patient's chances of a full recovery.
Due to the high dosages, a person develops a number of side effects, which were mentioned above. Therefore, the treatment of a cancer patient with interferon is carried out only in a hospital and under the supervision of a specialist. After the main course, the patient is usually prescribed long-term treatment with the drug in maintenance dosages. In this case, you can continue treatment at home.
Interferon-alpha for the treatment of melanoma is sold under the trade name "Intron A". This drug is manufactured by the Belgian pharmaceutical company Schering-Plow Labo NV and will cost the buyer about 7,000-11,000 rubles per package.
There are also similar drugs: "Realdiron", "Reaferon", "Laferon" and the like.
Interleukin-2
A unique drug that has been shown to be effective at all stages of the disease. Therefore, "Interleukin-2" can be prescribed to patients with the fourth stage of cancer.
The active substance of the drug is a protein that is synthesized by lymphocytes. Interleukin promotes the development of killer cells that recognize and destroy malignant agents. As a result, the malignant tumor is reduced in size and loses the ability to metastasize.
In the modern pharmaceutical market, the product is available in the form of several trade names that differ in composition. In addition to iterleukin, they contain:
- microorganisms E.coli - "Bioleukin", "Teceleukin", "Proleukin";
- Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast - Roncoleukin, Albuleikin.
The cost of the drug is also high and depends on the dosage. For example, Roncoleukin costs between 2000-7000 rubles per package with three ampoules.
All drugs have one thing in common - they contribute to the production of cytokines, proteins, in the absence of which the immune system is not able to fight the malignant process.
Features of immunotherapy
- The use of this treatment method can be prescribed only by an oncologist.
- Immunotherapy can be prescribed only after a series of examinations, passing laboratory tests to patients. This will allow doctors to have a complete picture of the disease, the patient’s state of health, and the stage of cancer.
- Surgery to remove the tumor should remain the priority treatment. Then it is possible to use immunotherapy. This will significantly increase the patient's chances of recovery.
- The name of the drug, dosage and duration of the course is prescribed by the doctor individually for each patient.
- Treatment should be carried out in a hospital, under the supervision of doctors.
- It is unacceptable to abruptly interrupt treatment, this can lead to a significant decrease in immunity and an even greater development of the disease.
- During and after therapy, the patient should eat a large amount of vitamins and minerals to maintain the body's defenses.
- At the end of the course, doctors examine the patient to monitor the effectiveness of the treatment.
Advantages of immunotherapy
Immunotherapy is a fairly young cancer treatment. Despite this, she already managed to prove herself, having a number of advantages.
- Life extension in patients with cancer of the last stages and having metastases even in organs separated from the tumor.
- Immunotherapy for melanoma increases the chances of recovery in cases where surgery to remove a malignant tumor is impossible.
- Increased survival rate among cancer patients.
Disadvantages of immunotherapy for melanoma
As with any other cancer treatment method, this therapy is not without drawbacks. These include:
- Indirect (through the immune system) action. That is, drugs do not directly affect cancer cells.
- At high dosages, interleukin-based drugs can cause organ failure.
- The duration of treatment courses.
- The need for regular maintenance therapy. In the opposite case, the disease certainly recurs.
- Inability to accurately predict the response of cancer cells to this treatment. In about a third of cases, the effect is absent. This is explained by the fact that there is no objective data on the characteristics of the immunity of each individual patient.
- Individual selection of the dosage regimen based on numerous examinations of the patient.
- Long-term use of drugs leads to inhibition of the body's own immunity.
Conclusion
Currently, there are several ways to get rid of skin cancer. However, those patients who have been treated with melanoma immunotherapy will have the greatest chances of recovery. Therefore, it is so important as soon as possible to make drugs more accessible to a wide range of patients. And maybe then the mortality rates from oncology (in particular from skin cancer) will decrease.