TriangleFOR PATIENTS · SOURCE READING
Immunotherapy
Source: Childhood Melanoma Treatment (PDQ®)–Patient Version, National Cancer Institute.
Source updated: October 18, 2021 · Captured 2026-09-09.
Selected source text with whitespace normalised. This Triangle page is not an NCI PDQ summary. Independent clinical review is pending.
Context: Treatment Option Overview / Three types of standard treatment are used:
Immunotherapy is a treatment that uses the patient's immune system to fight cancer. Substances made by the body or made in a laboratory are used to boost, direct, or restore the body's natural defenses against cancer. This type of cancer treatment is also called biotherapy or biologic therapy.
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Immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy: There are different types of immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy:
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Immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy: There are different types of immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy:
PD-1 inhibitor: PD-1 is a protein on the surface of T cells that helps keep the body’s immune responses in check. When PD-1 attaches to another protein called PDL-1 on a tumor cell, it stops the T cell from killing the tumor cell. PD-1 inhibitors attach to PDL-1 and allow the T cells to kill tumor cells. Pembrolizumab and nivolumab are used to treat melanoma that has spread to lymph nodes and are being studied to treat recurrent melanoma.
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Immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy: There are different types of immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy:
CTLA-4 inhibitor: CTLA-4 is a protein on the surface of T cells that helps keep the body’s immune responses in check. When CTLA-4 attaches to another protein called B7 on a cancer cell, it stops the T cell from killing the cancer cell. CTLA-4 inhibitors attach to CTLA-4 and allow the T cells to kill cancer cells. Ipilimumab is used to treat melanoma that has spread to lymph nodes or to other parts of the body and is being studied to treat recurrent melanoma.
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Preserved source evidence · Independent clinical review pending · Not medical advice