Dr Stephen Hodi presents data on a proof-of-principal phase II study that shows the white blood cell booster GM-CSF added to an increased dose of the immunotherapy ipilimumab extends survival for patients with metastatic melanoma at the 2013 ASCO Annual Meeting in Chicago.

More than two-thirds of patients were alive after one year of combination therapy vs. half of those treated with ipilimumab alone, a significant advance for metastatic melanoma. Interestingly, the combination also appears to be safer for patients than ipilimumab alone — GM-CSF decreased some of the serious side effects of ipilimumab.

Visit ecancerNews to read more