Long-Term Study Shows Nivolumab Protects Melanoma Patients for Nearly a Decade

A large international study has brought good news for people battling melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer. Researchers found that the drug nivolumab, given after surgery to remove advanced melanoma, can help keep the disease from coming back for many years—much longer than another widely used treatment, ipilimumab.

The results come from the CheckMate 238 trial, which tracked more than 900 patients with stage III or IV melanoma for almost nine years. These patients had their tumors surgically removed but were considered at high risk for the cancer to return. After surgery, they were randomly assigned to receive either nivolumab or ipilimumab for up to a year.