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RESEARCH PRODUCT

Immunotherapy of Malignant Melanoma

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For the field of cancer immunotherapy, malignant melanoma has a very special role. It has certainly critically influenced the past and the present of the field. Research performed in malignant melanoma has started to shape the field of cancer immunotherapy more than 20 years ago with the discovery of the first tumor-associated antigens documented to be recognized by antigen-specific T cells in patients. As discussed in the following sections, the privileged role of malignant melanoma has not been restricted to the pioneering phase of initial antigen discovery but has continued to exist through more than 20 years as documented by the clinical successes reported for immunotherapies such as cytokines, vaccines, and immunomodulatory antibodies and cellular therapies. In particular the successful clinical development of ipilimumab has been the birth of onco-immunology as a novel specialty in medicine. At present cancer immunotherapy of malignant melanoma is surely one of the most vibrant areas of medicine which is reflected by that fact that the journal “Science” named cancer immunotherapy its 2013 breakthrough of the year (Couzin-Frankel 2013). More novel concepts and improved immunotherapies have reached clinical development and may soon lead to even more approved therapies.