Melanoma, which affects the skin, is one of the most common and serious cancers in the U.S. It can be life-threatening in as little as six weeks. Its tumors can be resistant to many traditional cancer treatments like chemotherapy.
Now a unique treatment, with a surprising ingredient, is increasing the chances of survival for some melanoma patients.
From pitching to pool play most of Christine McGonigal’s fondest experiences with her grandkids happen outside. But all that came to a halt when she discovered a raised bump on her right leg.
“It was about the size of this thumbnail,” she told Ivanhoe.
Doctors said it was melanoma, an often-aggressive skin cancer linked to UV light. After more than a year of treatment, the tumor kept coming back.
“He did the Imlygic,” McGonigal told Ivanhoe.
Imlygic is the first FDA-approved viral drug for melanoma. It has an unexpected ingredient.
“It’s a modified form of herpes virus. It not only kills melanoma cells, but it also exposes the byproducts of its melanoma cells to the immune system,” explained Dr. Vadim Gushchin, director of the Cutaneous Malignancy Program at the Institute for Cancer Center at Mercy Medical Center.
This helps prevent new cancer cells from forming in tumors visible by ultrasound.
“You draw the drug into the syringe and inject it directly into the melanoma,” he said.
While some may experience temporary flu-like symptoms after injections it’s uncommon to actually contract the herpes virus from Imlygic.
“They actually able to see how lesions disappear in front of them which is very rewarding,” Gushchin said.
For McGonigal, it was a last resort that worked. Her scars remain but the melanoma hasn’t come back in two years. So she’s back in the sun, this time with sunscreen and a hat to show the grandkids how to have some real fun.
Imlygic injections take about 10 minutes and are conducted over several months. In clinical trials, Gushchin says 7 in 10 patients saw a reduction in their melanoma tumors within about four months and 3 in 10 had their melanoma disappear for many months to years.