🎗️ Melanoma — 2026-W41

What this page is. Every paper the week's monitor reviewed — including the ones that did not go into the digest. Material marked “Not selected” was reviewed and deliberately left out. It has not been fact-checked to digest standard and is not endorsed. For the curated read, see the digest itself.

Pooled analysis from the International Neoadjuvant Melanoma Consortium in resectable stage III melanoma, published in Nature Medicine. Provides long-term survival data by neoadjuvant regimen and suggests patients with major pathological response may not need adjuvant ICI, informing neoadjuvant practice.

Narrative review in Lancet Oncology synthesizing evidence linking the gut microbiome to outcomes with immune checkpoint inhibitors in melanoma, NSCLC, and renal cell carcinoma, and surveying emerging microbiome-directed interventions. Highlights how antibiotic/PPI use and microbial diversity may influence ICI efficacy, informing clinicians on an evolving but still investigational modifiable factor in immunotherapy outcomes.

Single-arm phase 2 substudy of tovorafenib in recurrent/refractory melanoma and other solid tumors with BRAF or CRAF fusions/amplification, published in JCO Precision Oncology. Shows meaningful activity in a rare, biomarker-selected population, suggesting an option for patients without standard therapy.

Retrospective comparative effectiveness study of pembrolizumab versus nivolumab as first-line therapy in advanced melanoma among US veterans, published in JAMA Network Open. Provides real-world outcome comparisons between two established first-line checkpoint inhibitors, offering incremental reassurance rather than changing current practice.

Multi-institution retrospective cohort in resected stage III-IV melanoma treated with adjuvant anti-PD-1, published in JAMA Network Open. Characterizes chronic immune-related toxicities and risk factors, informing counseling and survivorship monitoring.

Single-center cross-sectional patient survey in resected stage IIB-IIID melanoma, published in European Journal of Cancer. Informs shared decision-making on biomarker-guided de-escalation of adjuvant therapy, but does not change treatment on its own.