Current status and perspectives in immunotherapy for metastatic melanoma

// Riccardo Marconcini 1 , Francesco Spagnolo 2 , Luigia Stefania Stucci 3 , Simone Ribero 4 , Elena Marra 4 , Francesco De Rosa 5 , Virginia Picasso 2 , Lorenza Di Guardo 6 , Carolina Cimminiello 6 , Stefano Cavalieri 6 , Laura Orgiano 7 , Enrica Tanda 2 , Laura Spano 2 , Alfredo Falcone 1 and Paola Queirolo 2 for the Italian Melanoma Intergroup (IMI) 1 Unit of Medical Oncology 2, Azienda Ospedaliera-Universitaria Pisana, Department of Translational Research and New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, Italy 2 Department of Medical Oncology, IRCCS AOU San Martino-Istituto Nazionale per la Ricerca sul Cancro, Genova, Italy 3 Medical Oncology Unit, Department of Biomedical Sciences and Clinical Oncology, University of Bari, Bari, Italy 4 Dermatologic Clinic, Department of Medical Sciences, University of Turin, Turin, Italy 5 Istituto Scientifico Romagnolo per lo Studio e la Cura dei Tumori, IRST IRCCS, Meldola, Italy 6 Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori, Milan, Italy 7 AOU Cagliari, Department of Medical Oncology, University of Cagliari, Cagliari, Italy Correspondence to: Riccardo Marconcini, email: marconcini.riccardo@gmail.com Keywords: melanoma; immunotherapy; ipilimumab; pembrolizumab; nivolumab Received: April 23, 2017 Accepted: November 03, 2017 Published: January 03, 2018 ABSTRACT Metastatic melanoma was the first malignancy in which immune checkpoint inhibitors demonstrated their successful efficacy. Currently, the knowledge on the interaction between the immune system and malignant disease is steadily increasing and new drugs and therapeutic strategies are overlooking in the clinical scenario. To provide a comprehensive overview of immune modulating drugs currently available in the treatment of melanoma as well as to discuss of possible future strategies in the metastatic melanoma setting, the present review aims at analyzing controversial aspects about the optimal immunomodulating treatment sequences, the search for biomarkers of efficacy of immunocheckpoint inhibitors, and innovative combinations of drugs currently under investigation.