Every June, National Cancer Immunotherapy Month highlights one of the most important advances in modern cancer care: harnessing the body’s own immune system to fight cancer. 

Few cancers have benefited more from immunotherapy than melanoma. Once considered one of the deadliest forms of skin cancer when it spread beyond the skin, melanoma has become a remarkable success story in the oncology world. The breakthroughs achieved in melanoma research not only transformed outcomes for melanoma patients but also paved the way for immunotherapy treatments that are now helping patients with lung cancer, kidney cancer, bladder cancer, head and neck cancer, liver cancer and many other malignancies. 

Before the era of immunotherapy, treatment options for advanced melanoma were extremely limited. Patients with metastatic melanoma often faced poor prognoses, and long-term survival was rare. 

Before 1975 there were no FDA-approved drugs for melanoma. Between 1975 and 2011, only three melanoma therapies received FDA approval, and the 10-year survival rate for patients with metastatic melanoma was approximately 5%. 

The landscape changed dramatically beginning in 2011 with the approval of immune checkpoint inhibitors, including ipilimumab, followed by pembrolizumab and nivolumab. These therapies work by releasing the “brakes” that cancer places on the immune system, allowing immune cells to recognize and attack cancer more effectively. 

Since 2011, 17 new drugs have been approved for 31 melanoma indications, increasing the 10-year survival rate for metastatic cutaneous (skin) melanoma from approximately 5% to over 50%. For many patients, immunotherapy has turned what was once a rapidly fatal disease into a cancer that can be controlled for years—turning survivors into thrivers with no evidence of disease.  

Melanoma became one of the first proving grounds for immune checkpoint inhibitors because melanoma tumors are often highly visible to the immune system. Researchers studying why some melanoma patients experienced remarkable responses helped uncover fundamental principles of cancer immunology. 

These discoveries led to broader investigations across oncology. Today, immunotherapy drugs first studied in melanoma are approved to treat numerous cancers, including: 

– Non-small cell lung cancer 

– Renal cell carcinoma (kidney cancer) 

– Bladder cancer 

– Head and neck cancers 

– Esophageal cancer 

– Liver cancer 

– Hodgkin lymphoma 

– Certain colorectal cancers 

– Merkel cell carcinoma 

– Triple-negative breast cancer 

Many of the immune checkpoint pathways that were validated in melanoma became the foundation for treatment strategies used throughout cancer care. The success of melanoma immunotherapy demonstrated that the immune system could be a powerful and durable weapon against cancer, fundamentally changing oncology practice worldwide. 

Progress in immunotherapy did not happen overnight. It was built on decades of scientific research supported by patients, advocates, researchers and organizations committed to advancing melanoma science. 

Since 1998, the MRF has funded more than $28 million in melanoma research. The organization’s grant programs support investigators at every stage of their careers from medical students to senior investigators and fund studies focused on prevention, early detection, treatment innovation and survivorship. 

The MRF’s research portfolio reflects many of the most important challenges facing patients today, including improving immunotherapy responses, overcoming treatment resistance, reducing side effects and identifying biomarkers that help predict which patients will benefit most from therapy. 

Recent MRF-funded projects in innovative immunotherapy research will continue to benefit patients and advance knowledge in this field.  

For example, in 2026, the MRF funded a Team Science Award led by Dr. James Mulé titled, “Harness Nanochemical Design to Elevate STING-Based Melanoma Immunotherapy.” STING-targeted therapies are an exciting area of immuno-oncology research designed to stimulate powerful anti-tumor immune responses. 

Researchers supported by the MRF are investigating biomarkers that may help predict immunotherapy success. For example, studies have examined predictive biomarkers of response to neoadjuvant immunotherapy and the role of tumor-draining lymph nodes in forecasting treatment outcomes. These efforts may help clinicians personalize treatment strategies in the future. 

While immunotherapy has transformed care, not every patient responds. MRF-funded projects are also exploring why resistance develops and how it can be overcome. Recent awards have supported research into RNA-based therapeutics for resistant melanoma and strategies to improve anti-tumor immune responses. 

The story of immunotherapy in melanoma is one of the most encouraging examples of how research can transform patient outcomes. 

National Immunotherapy Month is an opportunity to celebrate these achievements while recognizing that research remains essential and more work needs to be done to benefit all patients.  

For patients and families facing melanoma today, the message is one of hope: immunotherapy has changed what is possible, and ongoing research continues to expand those possibilities every year. 

The MRF held a webinar featuring Breakthrough Consortium Co-Chairs, Dr. Hussein Tawbi of MD Anderson Cancer Center and Dr. Zeynep Eroglu of Moffitt Cancer Center, reviewing nine important melanoma studies presented at ASCO 2026. Together, their presentations highlighted a promising message: researchers are continuing to make progress, even for patients whose melanoma has been difficult to treat.

While many of these treatments are still being studied and are not yet widely available, the results show real momentum in several exciting areas, including oncolytic virus therapy, mRNA vaccines, engineered T-cell therapies and new approaches for rare melanoma subtypes. 

Why these melanoma research updates matter 

Melanoma treatment has changed dramatically over the last decade thanks to immunotherapy and targeted therapy. But there are still major challenges. Some patients do not respond to standard treatments at all, while others may respond at first and later see their cancer return. In addition, rarer forms of melanoma — such as uveal melanoma and mucosal melanoma — often have fewer or no FDA approved treatment options and poorer outcomes. 

That is why the studies highlighted in this webinar are so important. Many focused on patients whose disease had already resisted earlier treatments. Seeing durable responses in these groups is encouraging and suggests that new strategies may help fill important gaps in care. 

A virus designed to fight melanoma 

One of the most talked-about approaches was RP-1, an oncolytic virus therapy. Oncolytic viruses are specially designed to infect and destroy cancer cells while also helping the immune system recognize the tumor more effectively. 

In this study, RP-1 was combined with the immunotherapy drug nivolumab in patients whose melanoma had stopped responding to PD-1 treatment. At three years, nearly 48% of patients were still alive, which is especially meaningful in a population with very limited options. Researchers also saw a survival “plateau,” which can suggest that some patients are experiencing a long-lasting benefit. 

This is particularly notable because many patients in the study had melanoma that was strongly resistant to prior immunotherapy, and nearly half had already received the combination of ipilimumab and nivolumab. Though initially denied FDA approval in July 2025 and April 2026, RP-1 is now being tested in a phase 3 trial and will be reconsidered by the FDA in the coming months, bringing it one step closer to possible approval.  

A personalized mRNA vaccine continues to show promise 

Another exciting update involved an individualized mRNA neoantigen vaccine, sometimes called intismeran autogene, used along with pembrolizumab after surgery for patients with stage 3 or stage 4 melanoma. 

This treatment is designed specifically for each patient. Scientists analyze the tumor, identify unique markers (called neoantigens), and create a personalized vaccine to help the immune system better recognize and attack melanoma cells. 

In earlier results, the vaccine plus pembrolizumab reduced the risk of recurrence by 50% compared with pembrolizumab alone. It also improved distant metastasis-free survival, meaning patients were less likely to develop melanoma that spread to distant parts of the body. 

The phase 3 trial has already completed enrollment, and patients and advocates are now waiting for the next set of results. If the findings are found to be positive, this approach could become an important new option in the adjuvant setting — treatment given after surgery to reduce the risk of the cancer coming back. 

Engineered T-cell therapies may open new doors 

Cell therapy is another area generating excitement. These therapies use a patient’s own immune cells, which are collected, modified or expanded in a lab, and then returned to the body to fight cancer more effectively. 

One therapy discussed was anzu-cel, a PRAME-targeted TCR-T therapy. In this early study, the response rate was 50% in cutaneous melanoma and 67% in uveal melanoma, even though all patients had melanoma that had already resisted PD-1 treatment. A key advantage is that the treatment can be made using peripheral blood, meaning it does not require removing tumor tissue through surgery. Manufacturing also takes about two weeks, which is relatively fast for this kind of treatment. 

However, anzu-cel currently only works for patients with a specific immune system marker called HLA-A*02:01, so it will not be an option for everyone. 

The webinar also covered OBX-115, a newer form of tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) therapy. In a small study, about 67% of patients responded, including some with mucosal and acral melanoma, which are often harder to treat. One particularly promising feature is that this therapy may avoid the need for high-dose IL-2, a treatment that can cause significant side effects. Instead, it uses an oral medication called acetazolamide to activate a built-in signal that helps the cells work. 

Researchers also noted that OBX-115 may be created from core biopsy samples, rather than requiring full surgical tumor removal. If this approach continues to succeed, it could expand access to cellular therapy for more patients. 

New research in treatment before surgery 

Several studies looked at neoadjuvant therapy, or treatment given before surgery. This approach is already gaining attention in stage 3 melanoma because it may shrink tumors prior to surgery, help doctors learn how well the treatment is working, and possibly improve long-term outcomes. 

In a small study of stage 2 melanoma, patients received nivolumab plus relatlimab before surgery. Remarkably, 60% had a pathologic complete response, meaning no living cancer cells were found in the tissue removed at surgery. Side effects were still important to watch, with 15% experiencing serious toxicities, but the study suggests this strategy may be feasible in stage 2 melanoma as well. 

Another neoadjuvant study used a more intensive combination of ipilimumab, nivolumab and relatlimab in patients with stage 3 or 4 melanoma. The pathologic complete response rate was 63%, which is encouraging. At the same time, the study also raised concerns about safety, including one death from myocarditis, a serious inflammation of the heart. This is an important reminder that while more aggressive treatment may produce stronger responses, it can also come with greater risk. 

Encouraging progress for melanoma that has spread to the brain 

Melanoma brain metastases can be especially difficult to treat, so updates in this area are closely watched. Researchers presented results on next-generation BRAF/MEK inhibitors designed to better reach the brain. 

In heavily pretreated patients who had already received earlier BRAF/MEK therapies, the combination of clatrofinib and pomeretinib produced a 26% response rate overall and a 33% intracranial response rate in evaluable brain metastases. 

These findings are still early, but they suggest that newer targeted therapies may help some patients even after standard BRAF/MEK drugs stop working. 

Rare melanoma subtypes remain a major focus 

For people with uveal melanoma, one of the most encouraging updates came from a study of darvasertib plus crizotinib. In patients with metastatic disease who were HLA-A*02:01 negative, the pill combination led to a median progression-free survival of 7 months, compared with 3.1 months for immunotherapy. The objective response rate was also much higher: 37% versus 6%. 

These results suggest that this combination could become an important first-line systemic treatment option for a group of patients who currently have very limited choices. 

For mucosal melanoma, the news was more mixed. A study of a bispecific anti-PD-1/CTLA-4 therapy plus anti-VEGF axitinib showed a 35% response rate, but it did not appear meaningfully better than the current standard of ipilimumab plus nivolumab. While disappointing, this finding is still valuable because it helps researchers better understand which approaches may or may not move the field forward. 

What patients should take away from all of this 

The biggest message from ASCO 2026 is that melanoma research is moving forward on many fronts at once. 

Researchers are not only trying to improve treatment for common forms of melanoma — they are also working on better options for: 

– people whose melanoma has stopped responding to immunotherapy 

– patients with brain metastases 

– and those with rare melanoma subtypes like uveal and mucosal melanoma 

At the same time, it is important to remember that many of these studies are still early-phase trials. Some enrolled only a small number of patients, and several treatments are not yet approved. Promising results do not always translate into standard care right away. More testing is needed to confirm who benefits most, how long responses last, and what side effects patients may face. 

Support and resources from the Melanoma Research Foundation 

The webinar also highlighted practical resources available through the MRF for patients and families, including: 

– 7 animated learning modules to help explain melanoma and treatment options  

– Free downloadable educational materials for patients, caregivers, providers and community events 

– A no-cost clinical trial finder  

– Patient symposia in cities across the United States  

– Advocacy opportunities at both the state and national level. 

For patients trying to make sense of a fast-changing treatment landscape, these resources can be incredibly helpful. 

Looking ahead 

One of the most meaningful ways to help move the field forward is through clinical trial participation, when appropriate. Clinical trials are how new treatments become tomorrow’s standard of care. 

For anyone living with melanoma, the pace of research can feel overwhelming — but it can also be empowering. Each new study adds to a growing body of knowledge, and each breakthrough brings the melanoma community closer to more effective, more personalized and more durable treatments. 

If you have questions about clinical trials or educational resources, the MRF encourages patients and caregivers to reach out to education@melanoma.org and to follow their newsletters and social media for the latest updates. 

My name is Katie and there was a time when my family was told I had weeks left to live. I thought my biggest challenge would be surviving cancer when I was diagnosed with melanoma at 25 years old. Hi, my name is Katie and I thought tanning was safe. I knew nothing about melanoma. I felt like sunburns were just what happened after a day outside. Like many young adults, melanoma wasn’t anything to worry about. I didn’t know melanoma could take my life.

By the time I learned, it almost did.

Being diagnosed with melanoma was only the beginning. Learning how to live through the years that followed, of surgeries, the recurrences, the losses and ultimately trying to survive it all.

What started as Stage IIA melanoma from a dark, raised mole on my left forearm would eventually lead to a Stage IV metastatic melanoma. Since 2006, I underwent 18 surgeries, multiple recurrences, 3 chemotherapies, 3 immunotherapies, tons of radiation, a double blinded clinical trial, countless hospital stays and endless scans. Melanoma took away my ability to have children, a throbbing head from brain surgery, chronic pain from years of trauma and therapy treatments and all of these experiences changed my life forever.

But after nearly two decades of living with the impact of melanoma, I’ve realized the most important parts of my story aren’t always found in my endless medical records.

Melanoma entered my life when I was building a future. I was a young wife, a young mother and someone making plans like any 20 something would.

But cancer interrupted everything.

In 2008, just two weeks after the birth of my second daughter, my melanoma returned in my left armpit after two years of NED. Months later, it spread again, it went to my right lung, then my brain, my uterus and other parts of my body. There were moments when the future felt impossible to imagine.

Through the considerable setbacks, my husband stood beside me. He became more than my spouse, he had to be my medical advisor, my advocate and my courage when I couldn’t find my own. Alongside my family, who helped with meals, my babies and everyday chores.

My daughters, just 5 and not even 1, became my strength and my inspiration. They gave me reasons to keep fighting on the days when treatment left me exhausted, scared and overwhelmed.

Cancer became part of our family’s story, but it never became the whole story. There were times when hope looked different than I imagined it would.

Hope wasn’t believing everything would be okay. Hope was agreeing to another surgery. Showing up for another appointment. Getting through gamma knife radiation or another chemo treatment.

It felt hard planning for tomorrow when tomorrow felt lost. Over time, I learned that hope is not a feeling. It’s a decision.

And that decision carried me through some of the hardest moments of my life. I had to learn to focus on the moment, not what was happening hours from now. My melanoma world was a minute-to-minute chance of seeing tomorrow. That same hope led us to Disneyland after another surgery and hearing I had weeks to live.

For years, my focus was simply survival. Then I realized surviving wasn’t enough. If I had been given another chance at life, I wanted to use it to make an impact, support others so no one had to go through this. My treatment began working and I was going to raise my girls.

What began as sharing my experiences online evolved into advocacy.

Today, I work to raise funds and awareness about melanoma prevention, early detection, patient support and research. I have had the privilege of advocating on Capitol Hill, volunteering within the skin cancer community, supporting fellow patients and helping advance conversations that can save lives.

Through my social media platforms, My Melanoma World and Stop Melanoma Movement, I share education, resources and support for others. I educate on the realities of life before, during and after a melanoma diagnosis. I spend my days helping others learn what I wish I had known at 25. I don’t want anyone to fight alone.

People often think survivorship means we are “back to normal.” This became our new normal. For many of us, this is our life forever, the skin checks, the scars, chronic pain, neuropathy, scan anxiety and the lasting reminders of everything our bodies have endured.

My pain turned into purpose and found a way of growing in my most vulnerable moments. I had no idea my journal, would be the thing that helped me cope and encourage me to share my story.

When I was diagnosed at 25, I was so scared and alone. No one who was like me but today I am advocating for change, building a community and helping others understand the importance of prevention and early detection. I’m no longer doing this alone.

Every conversation about prevention. Every skin check encouraged. Every patient who feels less alone. Every advocate who chooses to speak up. Every researcher searching for better answers. It all matters. It is all worth it. Melanoma changed my life, but it did not define me. I decided that part for myself. Today, I measure survival by the lives I can impact, the people I can support and the cancerversaries I am fortunate enough to celebrate.

And after everything melanoma tried to take from me, the greatest thing, is still being here to watch my daughters grow into remarkable young women. They are 23 and 18 years old. One has graduated from college, and the other is beginning nursing school after recently graduating high school.

Seeing them thrive is a reminder of just how much this journey has been worth. That, more than anything, is the best feeling in the world as a parent…

and I was here to see it all.

“I would like to share with you a little story about my life and battle with melanoma. In 2012, my wife Kim and I had just finished our yearly exams with a local dermatologist. We decided we were tired of spending money on a doctor who looked at us for 30 seconds with zero regard for our health, so we decided we weren’t going back. Fast forward two years when Kim noticed a spot on her face, and we went back to the same dermatologist and was told it was nothing but a sunspot. Kim didn’t like the answer and was referred to Dr. Moon by our PA, who diagnosed her with a Basal Cell that needed immediate attention. When Kim left Dr. Moon’s office, she scheduled me for a screening as I hadn’t been in two years.

During my visit with Dr. Moon in 2014, three spots were determined to be areas of concern, and off she went cutting out biopsies to send off and get tested. A week later, Dr. Moon called to let me know that I had two spots of melanoma that needed immediate attention. Of course, me being me, I said thank you for the call and that I would be in touch after race season and after our spring ski trip. Thankfully my good friend Maurice set me straight and I was operated on the following week.

In 2016 and 2017 I was again diagnosed with two additional melanomas. The spot we found in 2016 was very concerning as it was quite large and on my neck. This time I had my surgery completed at Moffitt in Tampa to ensure we got everything. After years of clear screenings, my melanoma journey wasn’t over. In January 2026, another melanoma was detected during a routine skin check. Thankfully, it was caught early, and I received treatment at Mayo Clinic, where I underwent a successful Mohs surgery. I am currently healing well and incredibly grateful for the expert care I received.

My experience is a reminder that melanoma doesn’t always end with a single diagnosis. Ongoing skin checks, vigilance and early detection remain critical. Like many of you, what I didn’t understand in 2014 was that early detection can mean the difference between living a healthy life and having a life-threatening illness. The five-year relative survival rate from diagnosis for localized, early melanoma is over 98%, but less than 20% from melanoma that hasn’t been diagnosed early and has spread to distant sites. Melanoma is the third most common cancer among women ages 20-39 and the second most common cancer in men ages 20-39. Every eight minutes someone is diagnosed with melanoma and every hour someone dies from melanoma.

#GetNakedJax is a casual event with Jacksonville determination to fund research to help cure Melanoma and to raise awareness for skin checks.  A skin check saved my life, and we want to save as many lives as possible!” – Jason Sessions

Join Jason and the MRF on Thursday, October 22, 2026, on the lawn at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, FL for one of Jacksonville’s best fundraising events to raise awareness and support melanoma research. To learn more the 6th annual #GetNakedJax, visit www.getnakedjax.org.

“When you’re a nurse, you advocate for your patients daily. They put their trust in us to take are of them. So when the roll was reversed, I thought I was being cared for. But unfortunately, I was dismissed, gaslit and told I was being “dramatic” a few times. So for almost three years, while working a very demanding job, I dismissed a mole on my right arm that had been changing. I kept telling myself, maybe it’s nothing, maybe I’m not doing the cream right. Everything but advocating for myself. Not only did it grow and darken, it would itch and bleed. It developed a jagged edge with a darker border. I knew something was wrong, but kept being told it didn’t need a biopsy, didn’t need a dermatology referral and “just keep putting the steroid cream on it.”

I finally made my own dermatology appointment. I know sometimes that is hard to do, but I explained my mole and how long it had been there, and had an appointment shortly after. A biopsy was performed almost instantly. 2 weeks later, on August 28, 2025 I received a text from my doctor, “Hey where are you right now?” We all know what that means, definitely not good. The phone call that followed changed my life forever, I had invassive malignant melanoma, and it was deep. Deep enough that I needed to be referred to a surgical oncologist and preferably a melanoma specialist. My dermatologist was wonderful and knew how long it had been untreated, so she and another nurse practitioner friend got to work getting me the quickest appointment possible.

Telling my husband, children and family I had melanoma was not something I would wish on anyone. At the time my children were 15 and 10 and they did not take it well. It wasn’t a procedure I was going to be able to hide until I knew the biopsy results. It was going to look like a shark took a bite out of my arm. I had to tell them. Then came the question, “mama, are you going to die?” What do you even say to that?! “Well I hope not.” Do you lie? Beause truthfully, I didn’t know if it had spread yet, so my answer would not have been the truth. We did a lot of learning, crying, talking. I notified their schools of what we were going through so they could seek help at school if they needed it. I hope everyone has that kind of relationship with their childrens’ schools, because they were wonderful.

On September 16, 2025, I met with a wonderful doctor at UAB in Birmingham, AL and she had a cancellation on the 19th and could go ahead and do my wide local excision and sentinel lymph node biopsy. She really didn’t want me waiting another month to have my surgery. I was forwarned about the size of my excision, but I don’t think I processed what I was being told. When I woke up in recovery, I cried. I cried when I got home. I cried from the pain. I cried because I knew this big of a procedure could have been prevented. I should have kept pushing, I should have trusted my intuition, I cried because I felt like I didn’t matter to someone I respected and worked for for almost a decade.

After almost a month, my lymph node biopsy was clear and I was cancer free.

Life after melanoma has been a whirlwind of emotions. I hated my arm and my scar. I have a lot of pain and nerve damage with no feeling at the same time. It’s hard to describe. I have gotten two steroid injections into my scar for keloids, and I see my dermatologist every 3 months for skin checks. I have not had another biopsy since my diagnosis, althought there are spots that we are watching closely.

Another thing I wasn’t truly prepared for, was the toll my mental health would take after my diagnosis. Yes, I’m cancer free, but my mind doesn’t believe that. I feel like I’m constantly having to calm myself down if I think something has changed. You subconsciously feel your lymph nodes. You google things you shouldn’t. You dream about it returning. You lose people you love, whether you’ve met them in person or talk every day via facetime. It is a lot to process. It’s something I struggle with daily.

Even though I’m new to the melanoma world, I jumped into advocacy very quickly. I needed to channel my frustration and emotions into something or I would go insane. I have met the most amazing people. My “melahomies” have been such a blessing through my entire journey. I also was awarded a scholarship to attend Melanoma Research Foundation Advocacy Days in Washington D.C. I had an amazing experience and learned so much. It is intimidating and empowering to lobby for something so personal to you and to people you love.

I’ve had so many opportunitis to spread awareness since my diagnosis. I was invited to throw out the first pitch for the Strike Out Cancer softball game at Troy University, as well as go on to our local radio station to tell my story.

I hope what you take away from my story, is to always advocate for yourself. Get a second and third opinion if you’re not being heard. You deserve a provider or specialist that you trust that will listen to you.

Make sure you’re seeing a board certified dermatologist for your annual skin exams. A quick, 15-20 minute skin exam can save your life. If caught early, melanoma is treatable with higher chances of survival.

-Wear your sunscreen. Whatever kind you like, wear it and reapply it often

Always seek shade when you can

Wear wide brimmed hats and sun protective clothing

Don’t use tanning beds or intentionally lay out in the sun.

“The Episode That Wasn’t Supposed to Be Mine

In March 2009, millions of people watched an episode of Grey’s Anatomy where a young female doctor named Izzy Stevens was diagnosed with Stage IV metastatic melanoma right before her wedding.

It was dramatic. Emotional. Unimaginable.

And for me, it was Familiar – because I was living that exact story in real life.

Just a few months earlier, in December 2008, I had found a lump in my groin and had been diagnosed with Stage IV metastatic melanoma myself. The only difference?

My diagnosis came right before my 40th birthday, not a TV wedding.

Like Izzy, I went through surgery. Mine was 5 ½ hours and the surgical oncologist removed ALL the lymph nodes from my left leg and pelvis area.

Like Izzy, I endured high-dose Interleukin-2 (IL-2), one of the most aggressive and toxic treatments available. But I had to stop mid-way since my liver was beginning to fail from the toxins.

And like Izzy… I survived.

But unlike an ending to a TV character’s storyline that wraps things up in a couple of episodes, my story keeps going. There’s only the next decision. And the one after that.

The Decisions That Matter Most

After surgery and IL-2, my oncologist and I had to decide what came next. At the time, options were limited. Immunotherapy research was still emerging, and many of the treatments available today were not available to me, since they were still in clinical trials.

We chose to use an existing drug called GM-CSF (Leukine), that is typically used to stimulate the patient’s own production of white blood cells, specifically used after chemotherapy. For me, it became something else entirely: a long-term maintenance regime and defense-system type therapy, hoping to enhance my immune cell activity and fight off any remaining melanoma cancer cells.

Two weeks on. Two weeks off.
For thirteen years. That’s a long relationship with a syringe.

That decision, and the partnership with my doctor, shaped everything that followed.

So, while I was engaged in this long-term commitment with an uncertain, unconventional treatment and grasping to hope, something incredible was happening around me: medicine was evolving.

The options that weren’t approved by the FDA when I was diagnosed, are now saving lives every single day. Survival rates have improved dramatically. What once felt like a long shot is now, for many, a very real chance.

That progress didn’t happen by accident. It happened because of research, advocacy, and people who refused to accept the status quo.

Looking back, I realize something important: If you’re navigating melanoma today, there are two decisions that will matter more than anything else:

1. Choose your oncologist carefully.
This is not just a doctor, it’s your partner. Do your research. Get second opinions. Visit multiple medical centers. Trust your instincts. You deserve someone who listens, who explains, and who treats you like a human being, not just a case.

2. Understand your treatment options.
The landscape has changed dramatically. In 2009, I was given a 10% chance of surviving ten years and a choice of only 3 undesirable, highly toxic, therapies: Chemotherapy, Interferon and IL-2. Today, thanks to advances in immunotherapy and research, survival rates have improved in ways we couldn’t have imagined back then and, there are multiple immunotherapies and combinations to choose from.

So once those 2 decisions are made, hold on to them with confidence, try to let go of the doubt, be hopeful, because HOPE is as powerful as any medication I have ever taken. And the good news is that hope is no longer the exception. It’s becoming the expectation.

What I Wish Everyone Knew About Melanoma

The most important part of my melanoma story isn’t actually about what happened after my diagnosis — it’s about what could have happened before it.

So here it is. The simplest, most important advice I can give you:

1. Wear sunscreen. Every day.

Not just at the beach. Not just on sunny days. Every day your skin is exposed.
Protect your skin like it matters, because it does.

2. Avoid sunburns, tanning beds and over exposure to the sun at any cost.

A tan and sunburns are skin damage, it’s cumulative and adds up over time. Do not ever use tanning beds. The risk is not worth your life!

“The tanning bed lamps will deliver extraordinarily high levels of UVA radiation and… They (also) give you high levels of UVB – it’s the equivalent of being high noon at the equator, but then on top of that, they give you 15x as much UVA radiation as can be experienced anywhere on the surface of the planet earth… This odd blend of UV radiation, basically high UVB and super physiological levels of UVA might be inducing these one-off mutations” Hunter Shain PhD (UCSF) Northwest Melanoma Symposium: Science to Survivorship- Seattle, WA 05.02.26

3. Get checked yearly by a board-certified dermatologist.

This one saves lives. Full stop and period.
(Tip: Do your own quick, routine, monthly skin checks, noticing any changes, as you can catch something early too.)

Why I Keep Sharing My Story

Every May, during Melanoma Awareness Month, and again in the fall during the Seattle Miles For Melanoma 5k event, I share these same three reminders.

Not because they’re new.
But because they’re easy to ignore.

And every year, someone reaches out to tell me they scheduled a skin check because of something I posted… and found something that needed attention.

Sometimes it’s precancerous.
Sometimes it’s more serious.

But every single time, it was caught earlier than it would have been otherwise and that’s why this matters.

And that’s why I keep sharing.

What Seventeen TV Seasons Looks Like

Seventeen years later, my storyline includes:

50+ biopsies

19 PET scans

6 CT scans

4 Brain MRIs

4 Mohs procedures to remove basal or squamous cell carcinomas on my

face that temporarily left me looking like something out of a boxing match.

In the end, I am left with one lasting side effect: Stage 2 lymphedema in my left leg. But even that has a hopeful chapter.

Thanks to another episode I saw on Grey’s Anatomy back in 2012 and then the actual advancements in microsurgery that I learned about at a Melanoma Research Foundation sponsored, Northwest Melanoma Symposium at Fred Hutchinson Research Center in Seattle in May of 2023, I was able to receive a type of lymph node bypass procedure (LVA surgery) in 2024— and it’s made a significant improvement in my lymphedema and meaningful difference in my quality of life.

Progress isn’t just something we talk about. It’s something I’m living.

I carry scars — visible and invisible. But I also carry something else: perspective.

I’ve seen firsthand how far we’ve come in melanoma treatment. And thanks to the Melanoma Research Foundation and my amazing team of doctors in Seattle, I’ve benefited from it. And I’ve watched awareness, simple awareness, change outcomes for people I care about.

If You Take Anything From This…

It’s that you don’t need to go through what I did to learn that:

TV doctors might not be real — but the diagnoses, treatments, and hope absolutely are.

You do have control — over your doctors, your treatment, and your mindset.

Protect of your skin by: Wearing sunscreen daily, avoiding burns, tanning beds and overexposure to the sun and making the yearly board-certified dermatologist appointment

Because the best melanoma story…is the one that never has to be told.

Still Here. Still Hopeful.

My journey may have started like a TV drama in 2009, but today, we are getting closer to a world where Melanoma doesn’t have to end anyone’s story too soon.

Seventeen years later, I’m still here. Still hopeful. Still advocating. And still wearing sunscreen.

Thank you!” – Keri

Instagram & Threads: @kjschloredt
Facebook: Keri Schloredt
LinkedIn: Keri Schloredt
TikTok: @Keri_Kan

Jakob loved pizza, pasta, burgers, video games, movies, sports, animals (more than people if I’m being honest) and had a life long love of Super Heros. Jakob was in his 4th year at Georgia State University, studying Film and Media when he was diagnosed with Melanoma at age 21. It presented one evening, alone in his dorm room, as not being able to move his arm, then leg, then a face droop, a CT scan showed a brain bleed. Later that night he would undergo emergency brain surgery and biopsies from his brain and scalp, these showed stage 4 Metastatic Melanoma. After that surgery, I promised him I was going to fight this fight with him every single step of the way and we all assured him he was not alone. After Jakobs brain surgery he went to Shepherd Center for 6 weeks to undergo intense Rehab to regain leg and arm function back as the brain mets left him with left sided hemiparesis. We witnessed many amazing things while he was at Shepherd Center but his strength and resilience were the most amazing of all. There were many times when the therapists would ask him if he wanted to stop or keep going and he would always choose to continue on. Once he had the strength to walk again he was ready to start immunotherapy in March of 2023 every 3 weeks. We were so hopeful and side effects were very minimal. Wednesdays were his infusion days but they were also Comic Book New release day, so on these days we would eat lunch and pick up several new Comic Books. This was truly the highlight of his week since his world was turned upside down and made infusion days a little bit more tolerable. In May of 2024, his routine 3 month CT Scan showed mets to his bone, liver and lungs, we would have to stop immunotherapy but could move onto Targeted Meds. These meds were not kind to his body, he encountered several severe side effects from these meds. December of 2024 he started having random vomiting episodes. After several phone calls and ER visits it was found Jakob had Hydrocephalus, fluid on the brain, and days later, Leptomengeal Disease, a rare and severe complication of advanced Melanoma. Only affecting about 5-8% of Metastatic Melanoma patients we would learn. The cancer had gone to his cerebral spinal fluid and the membranes surrounding his brain. Jakob died January 16th, 2025 while in the hospital fighting an unfair fight at 23 years old. Jakob never believed he was as sick as he was-at least he never shared or showed that with us. So, while Melanoma may have taken our son, it has not taken us and as I promised him in the hospital in January 2023, I am continuing this fight every single step. We will not stop fighting for better early detection guidelines, more awareness and ultimately a Cure. We will continue to use our voice for all of the fighters, the caregivers, the survivors and the dear ones we all have lost and especially for our forever Super Hero, Jakob.

My melanoma started as a mole on my thigh. At the time, I didn’t fully understand how serious it was. Like many people, I had used tanning beds, spent years in the sun, and never thought skin cancer would happen to me—until it did.

Years later, my melanoma came back—and this time, it had spread to my lymph nodes. That’s when everything changed.

What followed wasn’t just treatment—it was a fight. I went through multiple immunotherapy treatments and targeted therapy. I experienced severe side effects, hospitalizations, and surgeries. There were moments where my body didn’t feel like my own anymore.

Even now, after reaching one year with no evidence of disease, the journey hasn’t simply ended. I live with long-term side effects, ongoing scans, and the emotional weight that comes with knowing how quickly things can change.

Melanoma doesn’t just affect your skin. It affects your entire life.

What’s even harder is knowing that my melanoma may have been caught earlier—that things could have been different.

That’s why early detection is everything.

A simple skin check—something so small—can be the difference between a minor procedure and a life-threatening diagnosis.

Today, I use my voice to raise awareness because I don’t want anyone else to go through what I’ve been through.

If there’s one thing I want people to take from my story, it’s this:

Please don’t wait.
Check your skin.
See a  Board Certified dermatologist.

Early detection can save your life.

#GetNaked and get checked!

“In 2009, I was diagnosed with Stage IV melanoma—at a time when there were little to no effective treatment options. It was a moment that changed everything. But through a clinical trial, I was given a second chance at life—one that I have never taken for granted. 

That experience became my “why.” 

In 2013, I had the privilege of helping launch the DC Run/Walk with the Melanoma Research Foundation (MRF), turning my personal journey into a mission to give back and create hope for others facing this disease. What started as survival quickly became advocacy. 

My commitment to MRF deepened over the years, including serving on the Board of Directors for 13 years as both Vice Chair and Secretary. During that time, I worked alongside an incredible group of leaders dedicated to advancing research, supporting patients, and expanding the organization’s impact. 

MRF has been more than an organization to me—it has been a lifeline. It connected me with leading doctors, fellow patients, and caregivers, creating a powerful network of support, knowledge, and compassion. This community has truly become a second family. 

As MRF celebrates its 30th anniversary, I am proud to stand alongside so many others who are committed to continuing the mission first envisioned by Diane Ashby and her husband, Danny—to drive research forward and bring hope to every melanoma patient. 

Because of MRF, and the progress we’ve made together, survival is no longer a long shot—it’s a reality worth fighting for.”

“After 16 years, why do we stay so committed to the Melanoma Research Foundation? 

The answer is simple: we are carrying the torch my husband, Steve, lit in 1998. 

After his first diagnosis, Steve didn’t just fight for his own life; he fought for the melanoma community. He never asked, “Why me?” Instead, he’d say, “Why not me? No one deserves this.” 

Following grueling treatments, Steve’s spirit remained unbroken; his daily walks turned into small jogs, and he eventually completed the NYC Marathon, coining the term “Miles for Melanoma.” 

He believed deeply in the MRF’s power to educate and find a cure. 

We lost Steve in 2010 after a 12-year battle that I never thought he would lose. 

Today, my children and I share his passion for the MRF’s mission. We support this organization to ensure Steve’s dedication lives on, and we hope that one day, no other family will have to endure the heartbreak of this loss.”