Molecular landscape of Hereditary Melanoma.

Melanoma is considered the most lethal skin cancer and its incidence has increased during the past decades. About 10 % of cases are classified as hereditary melanoma. Genetic predisposition usually manifests itself clinically as early onset and multiple cutaneous melanomas. Several genes have been identified as involved to melanoma susceptibility, some of them still with unknown clinical relevance. Beyond melanoma, the affected families are also more prone to develop other malignancies, such as pancreatic cancer. The identification of risk families and involved genes is of great importance, since different forms of oncological surveillance are recommended. However, well established guidelines to standardize both the selection of individuals and the genetic panel to be requested are still lacking. Given the importance of the genetic counseling and testing in the context of clinical suspicion of hereditary melanoma, this paper aims to review the literature regarding genetic panel indications worldwide.

Cancer immunotherapy: the art of targeting the tumor immune microenvironment.

For many decades, cancer treatment has been strongly directed toward the development of cytotoxic and cytostatic drugs, quite often leading to disappointing results due to the inter- and intra-tumoral heterogeneity. Lately, this intra-cellular look has given way to the understanding of the tumor microenvironment, thus enabling modification of the immunological dynamics between tumor cells and their host. An era of new drugs aiming to unlock the host immune system against tumor cells is steadily increasing. Strategies involving adoptive cell therapy, therapeutic vaccines, immune checkpoint inhibitors and so on have provided spectacular clinical responses and increased survival in previously refractory settings and "hard-to-treat" cancers. Based on a comprehensive search in the main scientific databases, annals of recent renowned oncology congresses and platforms of ongoing trials, the clinical pharmacology characteristics of the main classes of immunotherapeutic agents, as well as the new treatment strategies related to immunotherapy in solid tumors, are carefully discussed throughout this review.

Efficacy of doxorubicin after progression on carboplatin and paclitaxel in advanced or recurrent endometrial cancer: a retrospective analysis of patients treated at the Brazilian National Cancer Institute (INCA).

The treatment of endometrial cancer (EC) is challenging. There is no standard of care for patients who progressed after carboplatin and paclitaxel (CT) and all available drugs show a small response and poor long-term survival in this scenario. The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and toxicity profile of palliative doxorubicin after progression to CT therapy in advanced or recurrent EC. A retrospective review of the Brazilian National Cancer Institute database between 2009 and 2013 was performed, and all patients with recurrent and advanced EC treated with palliative doxorubicin after progression on CT were included. Progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), objective response rates as well as toxicity were evaluated. A total of 33 patients were enrolled, with a median age of 65.7 years. Objective responses were documented in 12.1% (3.0% of complete responses and 9.1% of partial responses). The median PFS was 4.4 months, and the median OS was 8.1 months for patients exposed to doxorubicin. The most common adverse event was anemia observed in 60.6% of patients. This retrospective study suggests that doxorubicin has a modest activity in patients with advanced or recurrent EC after treatment with CT.