Monitoring circulating tumor DNA liquid biopsy in stage III BRAF-mutant melanoma patients undergoing adjuvant treatment.

Background: The introduction of adjuvant therapies for patients with resected cutaneous melanoma (CM) has increased the need for sensitive biomarkers for risk stratification and disease monitoring. This study aims to investigate the utility of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) assessment in predicting and reflecting disease status during adjuvant therapy.

Methods: We enrolled 32 patients with resected BRAF-mutated stage III CM receiving adjuvant targeted therapy or immunotherapy.

Real-Life Outcomes of Adjuvant Targeted Therapy and Anti-PD1 Agents in Stage III/IV Resected Melanoma.

This study was carried out at the Dermatologic Clinic of the University of Turin, Italy, to assess the effectiveness and safety of adjuvant therapy in patients who received either targeted therapy (TT: dabrafenib + trametinib) or immunotherapy (IT: nivolumab or pembrolizumab) for up to 12 months. A total of 163 patients participated, including 147 with stage III and 19 with stage IV with no evidence of disease. The primary outcomes were relapse-free survival (RFS), distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS), and overall survival (OS).

Emerging prognostic biomarkers in advanced cutaneous melanoma: a literature update.

Introduction: Over the past two years, the scientific community has witnessed an exponential growth in research focused on identifying prognostic biomarkers for melanoma, both in pre-clinical and clinical settings. This surge in studies reflects the need of developing effective prognostic indicators in the field of melanoma.

Areas Covered: The aim of this work is to review the scientific literature on the most recent findings on the development or validation of prognostic biomarkers in melanoma, in the attempt of providing both clinicians and researchers with an updated broad synopsis of prognostic biomarkers in cutaneous melanoma.

Dabrafenib plus trametinib versus anti-PD-1 monotherapy as adjuvant therapy in V600-mutant stage III melanoma after definitive surgery: a multicenter, retrospective cohort study.

Background: Both dabrafenib/trametinib (D/T) and anti-PD-1 monotherapy (PD-1) are approved adjuvant therapies for patients with stage III V600-mutant melanoma. However, there is still a lack of head-to-head comparative data. We aimed to describe efficacy and toxicity outcomes for these two standard therapies across melanoma centers.