Immunotherapy: A Novel Approach to Harness Immune

The incidence of melanoma, the most aggressive and the deadliest form of skin cancer, is increasing. Although Melanoma is curable if detected early with surgical resection or chemotherapy but with progression and metastasis in later stages, the median survival decreases rapidly and it will be deadly. In the last decade, dramatic advances in understanding the behavior of melanoma cells and their interaction with the immune system have led to several new treatment strategies. The immunotherapy has been known as the most efficient therapies that currently have changed the perspective of oncology. Immune checkpoint blockade is a significant branch of immunotherapy, which has revolutionized the treatment of patients with advanced melanoma. Blockade of inhibitory receptors, cytotoxic T lymphocyte antigen 4 (CTLA4) and programmed death 1 (PD-1) via monoclonal antibodies promote antitumor immune responses by T-cell which, cause improve survival and durable responses in melanoma patients. In this work, we will review melanoma risk factors, initiation and development, characteristics, and the pros and cons of the most commonly available treatments with special emphasis on immunotherapy and immune checkpoint blockade.