AACR 2023: Keytruda® provides clinical response in 89% of rare skin cancer patients

A Phase II trial, presented at the AACR Annual Meeting (April 14−19 2023, FL, USA), has reported promising results for the use of Keytruda® (pembrolizumab) in treating resectable metastatic desmoplastic melanoma, a rare form of skin cancer. It has previously been found that desmoplastic melanoma tumors are characterized by high levels of tumor mutation burden, leading researchers to hypothesize that it may be sensitive to immune checkpoint inhibitors. This is the first prospective trial testing pembrolizumab for this subtype of desmoplastic melanoma, although the drug is approved in the USA as a first-line treatment for unresectable metastatic melanoma. The trial...