Author: Ammar Sukari, M.D.
Immunotherapy has emerged as a powerful tool in the fight against cancer. In recent years, it has shown significant promise in treating melanoma and nonmelanoma cutaneous cancer. Nonmelanoma cutaneous cancer is the most common form of skin cancer, accounting for approximately 80% of all cases. While nonmelanoma cutaneous cancer is often treatable with surgery or radiation, some cases may resist these standard treatments. Immunotherapy offers a new approach to treating these cases and has shown encouraging results. We will discuss the standard of care for nonmelanoma cutaneous cancer and more at the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute and Wayne State University’s (WSU) Head and Neck Symposium, including immunotherapy to manage these cancers.
Immunotherapy harnesses the power of the body's immune system to recognize and attack cancer cells. Cancer cells can often evade the immune system by producing proteins that prevent immune cells from recognizing and attacking them. Immunotherapy drugs, known as checkpoint inhibitors, block these proteins, allowing the immune system to recognize and attack the cancer cells.
Two checkpoint inhibitors that have shown promise in treating nonmelanoma cutaneous cancer are pembrolizumab and cemiplimab. In a clinical trial, both drugs effectively treated advanced nonmelanoma cutaneous cancer. The trial included patients with advanced basal or squamous cell carcinoma who had not responded to standard treatments such as surgery or radiation. The trial results showed that the immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) could shrink tumors in more than half of the patients, and the responses were durable, meaning the cancer did not come back for a significant period of time.
I invite you to join us in person for the 2023 Head and Neck Symposium. This year’s keynote speaker is Bryan D. Sofen, M.D., FAAD, FACMS, the section head of Dermatology and assistant professor at WSU’s School of Medicine and Karmanos. Dr. Sofen will present Moh’s surgery, a technique where thin layers of the skin are removed until no cancer cells are present. Learn when this treatment is considered the standard of care for some patient cases.
We also invited national experts in treating cutaneous cancers to speak about the most recent skin cancers, clinical trial results, and the implications of treating head and neck cutaneous cancers, including head and neck (HN) melanoma, HN cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (CSCC) and HN basal cell carcinoma (BCC). As research in this area continues, we must learn how to integrate targeted therapy and immune therapy with surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy to manage complicated advanced HN cutaneous cancers.
Join us for these conversations on Saturday, Oct. 21, at the Auburn Hills Marriot Pontiac. This annual symposium is approved for up to 5.25 AMA PRA Category I Credits™.
Learn more about the annual Head and Neck Symposium and register here.