News
Thriving after Advanced Melanoma at 26: John Elson’s Story
By Renee Orcione, MRA Digital Engagement & Communications Manager | 20 September 2023 In Allies & Partnerships, Melanoma Stories, Treatment
John Elson woke up – on his birthday – and discovered a lump in his neck. The New Yorker wasn’t entirely concerned and initially explained it away as a muscle knot. However, when the lump didn’t go away and he noticed a second one near his armpit, alarm bells started...
Dr. Hussein Tawbi: Opdualag Clinical Trial Updates
By Tanisha Jackson, PhD - MRA Scientific Program Director | 18 September 2023 In Allies & Partnerships, Events, News, Science, Treatment
In March of 2022, the melanoma community celebrated the FDA approval of nivolumab + relatlimab (brand name Opdualag), a new treatment for patients with metastatic melanoma that combines two different immunotherapies, nivolumab and relatlimab, into one medicine.
Combating Melanoma Brain Metastases and Leptomeningeal Disease
8 September 2023 In Allies & Partnerships, Events, Policy, Science, Treatment
Melanoma is the third most common source of brain metastases, exceeded only by lung and breast cancer. In addition, metastatic melanoma cells have the highest propensity for settling in the brain out of any solid tumor.
2024 Scientific Retreat & Patient Forum Scholarship
7 September 2023 In Events
MRA’s Patient Advocate Scientific Retreat & Patient Forum Scholarship encourages the engagement, education, and inclusion of patient advocates in melanoma research by providing support for their attendance at the Annual Melanoma Exchange Patient Forum and Scientific Retreat.
Living with Intention with Mucosal Melanoma: Eileen Walther’s Story
By Cody Barnett, MPH, MRA Senior Director of Communications & Patient Engagement | 24 August 2023 In Allies & Partnerships, Melanoma Stories, Science
In 2018, it had been just over a year since Eileen Walther had been diagnosed with follicular lymphoma, a typically slow-growing form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma that affects white blood cells. After undergoing a chemotherapy regimen known as R-CHOP, she’d been declared cancer free and was ready to get back to...
MRA Statement on FDA Approval of Hepzato Kit for Patients with Uveal Melanoma with Liver Metastases
16 August 2023 In News, Treatment
The Melanoma Research Alliance (MRA) released the following statements from MRA Chief Science Officer Joan Levy, PhD and MRA Chief Executive Officer Marc Hurlbert, PhD on the Food & Drug Administration approval of Hepzato Kit for patients with uveal melanoma with liver metastases that cannot be surgically removed.
Compassion, Dignity, & Fashion: Paloma Soledad’s Melanoma Story
By Renee Orcione, MRA Digital Engagement & Communications Manager | 7 August 2023 In Allies & Partnerships, Melanoma Stories
Advanced melanoma challenges patients and families in ways they often could never expect. For New Yorker Paloma Soledad, various side effects from her treatment made it difficult to feel comfortable in her everyday clothing. As a creative artist and designer, she saw this as an opportunity to find a solution...
MRA's Latest Research Report: Reaching for the Stars
25 July 2023 In Allies & Partnerships, Events, Melanoma Stories, News, Policy, Prevention, Science, Treatment
Each year, MRA convenes global thought leaders from across the melanoma research community to exchange ideas, report on scientific successes and challenges, and network and forge new collaborations.
Reflecting on a Decade of Progress and Future Heights in Melanoma
21 July 2023 In Allies & Partnerships, News, Science, Treatment
If you told Dr. Jedd Wolchok at the start of his oncology career what melanoma research would look like today, he likely wouldn’t believe you. Wolchok, now a world-renowned medical oncologist and Meyer Director of the Sandra and Edward Meyer Cancer Center at Weill Cornell Medicine, originally faced an alternate...
Melanoma Research Alliance Announces 2023 Dermatology Fellowship Award Recipients
20 July 2023 In News, Prevention, Science
The Melanoma Research Alliance (MRA), the largest non-profit funder of melanoma research, is proud to announce its 2023 Dermatology Fellowship Award recipients. MRA’s Dermatology Fellowship program is building a pipeline of scientists and clinicians who specialize in melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer and the fifth most common cancer in the United States.