Advanced Melanoma
Patients diagnosed with Stage 4 melanoma have disease that has spread from the skin to one or more distant sites in the body. Melanoma can spread anywhere in the body. It first tends to go to lymph nodes near where it started, but then can spread to the brain, lungs, liver, and bones. It can also spread to other areas of skin. (It’s still called melanoma, even though it’s moved somewhere else.)
The following is an overview for the treatment for metastatic melanoma. The information on this web-site is intended to help educate you about your treatment options and to create discussion to help in the decision-making process with your treatment team.
Newer precision cancer medicines and immunotherapy drugs are the standard of care because they delay the time to cancer recurrence and prolong survival. Patients should discuss the role of genomic testing for determining the best therapy to be used.
Your cancer will ultimately influence the treatments that are right for your situation.
Treatment may also include surgery, radiation, targeted therapy, or a combination of these treatment techniques. Multidisciplinary treatment, which uses two or more treatment types, is important for every cancer patient and will help in creating a care plan and goals for improving a chance of cure or prolonging survival. In some cases, participation in a clinical trial may provide additional options.