S-100: The Protein Linked to Recurrence of Melanoma

Melanoma – the most serious form of skin cancer – is described as black or black-blue, ugly-looking, abnormal mole-like shape.

As long as it is diagnosed and treated early, it can still be controlled easily as long as the cancer cells have not grown downward to the skin surface yet for it to invade healthy tissues.

However, even if melanoma has already been taken out, there is a chance that it will recur sometime in the patient’s life.

According to John Kirkwood, M.D., professor of medicine at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and director of the Melanoma Center at UPCI:

“Melanoma patients who initially respond well to treatment with interferon are at high risk of their cancer recurring.”

In a new study recently presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) in Chicago, higher levels of a protein called S-100 in patients with melanoma may correlate with a higher risk of the disease’s recurrence.

This finding was found out by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute (UPCI) led by Dr. Kirkwood that evaluated and tested serum samples from 103 patients who were treated with high-dose interferon (a standard immunotherapy treatment for melanoma) an average of eight years prior.

The researchers hope the further study on S-100 will also reveal clues on surviving melanoma.

Find more details from the full report.

[in photo: superficial spreading melanoma, credit: answers.com]