Melanoma News and Research

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Melanoma is a form of cancer that begins in melanocytes (cells that make the pigment melanin). It may begin in a mole (skin melanoma), but can also begin in other pigmented tissues, such as in the eye or in the intestines.

New Method Predicts Cancer Patient Outcomes at Single-Cell Resolution

Oregon Health & Science University researchers have developed a first-of-its-kind method to predict cancer patient survival using advanced molecular data from individual cells.

22 Apr 2026

Scientists Uncover the Molecular Fingerprints of mRNA Vaccine-Induced T Cells

The advent of mRNA vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 in 2020 changed the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, the Nobel-prize–winning technology is being adapted to fight cancer, with mRNA vaccines in clinical trials for melanoma, small cell lung cancer and bladder cancer, among others, opening the door to new ways of preventing and treating the disease.

17 Apr 2026

New Technology Tracks Real-Time Gene Activity to Find Common Disease Targets

Diseases like cancer or neurodegeneration are known to arise from genetic misfires. But treating such complex conditions hasn't been simply a matter of identifying the malfunctioning genes involved. With hundreds of genetic mutations spanning diverse pathways at play, connecting the dots between a constellation of mutations and a specific outcome has proved to be enormously difficult.

16 Apr 2026

Cysteine Pathways Shape T Cell Expansion and Cancer Defense

A research team from the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center, its Bloomberg~Kimmel Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health have discovered how the immune system's CD8+ T cells use the nutrient cysteine to control two essential functions that compete for this resource - the immune cell's ability to multiply and its ability to kill cancer cells.

1 Apr 2026

New Skin Atlas Reveals Cellular Diversity Across Body Sites

Mount Sinai researchers have published the first organ-wide human skin spatial atlas from across the body.

26 Mar 2026

New Mechanism Links Mitochondria Dysfunction to T Cell Exhaustion

The immune system's killer T cells do a commendable job of detecting and destroying cancer cells. But the harsh environment at the heart of tumors often saps them of their vitality, pushing them into a state of permanent lassitude called "terminal exhaustion."

23 Mar 2026

PAX3 Protein Plays Key Roles in Development and Cancer

Paired Box 3 (PAX3) is a protein that plays a critical role in the formation of tissues and organs during embryonic development and can positively (and less frequently, negatively) regulate gene expression.

19 Mar 2026

Molecular Switch Links Mitochondrial Stress to T Cell Exhaustion

Cancer-fighting T cells do not simply "run out of energy." They are molecularly reprogrammed.

19 Mar 2026

Psoriasis-Like Inflammation Limits Skin Cancer Growth

A study shows that psoriasis-like immune responses may limit skin cancer growth, challenging the view of chronic inflammation as solely tumor-promoting.

19 Mar 2026

Study Reveals How Altering Cancer’s Protein Machinery Stimulates Antitumor Immunity

A new study led by Pierre Close's team (GIGA, Laboratory of Cancer Signaling, and WELRI Investigator) reveals how subtly disrupting the way tumors produce their proteins can trigger a potent antitumor immune response.

12 Mar 2026

AstroID Database Organizes Billions of Cancer Cells Into Searchable Hierarchical Tiers

Researchers from the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center and The Johns Hopkins University have created a novel database structure that allows investigators anywhere to more easily study multiple types of cancer data - including laboratory results, genetic sequencing and imaging data - in one setting.

5 Mar 2026

Single-cell atlas reveals how melanoma evades the immune system

Integrative analysis of immune ecotypes in skin cancers highlights metabolic reprogramming and macrophage polarization as key factors in melanoma progression.

11 Feb 2026

Blocking Retinoic Acid Pathway Improves Dendritic Cell Anti-Tumor Function

Scientists at the Princeton University Branch of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research have identified novel mechanisms by which a metabolic derivative of vitamin A-all-trans retinoic acid-compromises both the body's normal anti-cancer immune response and, in a different context, the efficacy of a promising type of cancer vaccine.

6 Jan 2026

m-RNA and Immunostimulant Activate CAR-Macrophages in Cancer Cells to Fight Cancer

Immune cells (macrophages) capable of combating cancer exist within tumors in the human body, but they are unable to fulfill their functions adequately due to tumor suppression.

2 Jan 2026

Innovative mRNA Technology Rejuvenates Aging Immune System in Mice

Can the weakened immune systems of older individuals be rejuvenated? Researchers from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), the HI-STEM institute, and the Broad Institute have demonstrated that this is possible with an innovative approach.

18 Dec 2025

Visualizing How Cancer Seed Cells Evade Brain Immunity

Metastasis occurs when cancer cells break away from the original tumor and travel through the bloodstream to form new tumors in other parts of the body. It is the leading cause of cancer-related death. Brain metastasis is particularly severe and affects 10-30% of patients with advanced lung, breast, and melanoma cancers.

12 Dec 2025