Metastatic Melanoma

When a cancer metastasizes, it spreads from where it started to other areas of the body. Metastatic melanoma (also referred to as stage 4) is melanoma that started in one location but has spread from that site to other tissue or organs. It’s the most advanced form of melanoma.

There are several ways that melanoma may spread to other parts of the body.

• Cancer cells may enter the bloodstream or the lymphatic system (via the lymph nodes), then travel through these systems to another area of the body. There, they may form new tumors.
• An existing tumor may spread into nearby tissue, for example, the subcutaneous tissue beneath a skin cancer lesion. Eventually they may reach other tissues or organs and form new tumors there.

The symptoms of metastatic melanoma may vary depending on what parts of the body melanoma has spread to. Some of the common signs of Stage 4 melanoma include:

• Frequently swollen lymph nodes
• New lumps on the skin
• Feeling short of breath
• A persistent cough
• Bone pain
• Unexpected weight loss
• Persistent headaches

Signs Melanoma Has Spread to the Brain

One of the organs where melanoma may spread is the brain. These are some signs that melanoma may have metastasized to the brain:

• Headaches or nausea that don’t go away and are worse in the mornings
• A feeling of weakness or numbness in a limb
• Unexplained seizures

Treatment for metastatic melanoma varies based on a number of factors. These include what type of melanoma a patient has, what parts of the body it has spread to and whether the patient has already undergone treatment for earlier-stage melanoma.

Some of the possible treatment options for patients with Stage 4 melanoma include:

• Radiation therapy that targets places where the cancer has spread
• Targeted therapies
• Immunotherapy, such as tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) therapy or immune checkpoint inhibitors
• Isolated limb perfusion or isolated limb infusion, which administer chemotherapy directly to the affected limb
• Melphalan (Hepzat^™ Kit) therapy for uveal melanomas that have spread to the liver
• Clinical trials for melanoma that explore emerging treatments

The five-year relative survival rate for patients with Stage 4 (or metastatic) melanoma is about 5%. This means that around 1 in 20 patients diagnosed with Stage 4 melanoma survive at least five years after their initial diagnosis, compared to people without that cancer type.