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By AP Health Writer
updated 3/25/2011 1:07:15 PM ET 2011-03-25T17:07:15

The Food and Drug Administration has approved a breakthrough cancer medication from Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. that researchers have heralded as the first drug to prolong the lives of patients with melanoma.

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The federal health agency approved the injectable drug, called Yervoy, for late-stage or metastatic melanoma. The agency has only approved two other drugs for advanced melanoma, the last of which was cleared more than 13 years ago. Neither drug has been shown to significantly extend patient lives.

Known chemically as ipilimumab, the biotech drug only worked in a small segment of patients studied, and on average they lived just four months longer than patients given older medications. But experts say the drug is an important milestone in treating the deadliest form of skin cancer, which is often unresponsive to therapy.

"Clearly this is not a home run, but it's a solid base hit," said Tim Turnham, director of the Melanoma Research Foundation. "And because we see other things in the pipeline, we think this the first in a series of important new therapies for melanoma."

Ipilimumab is part of a group of targeted cancer medicines that harness the body's immune system to fight off cancer, rather than attacking the disease with outside chemicals like chemotherapy. The drug works by blocking a molecule linked to melanoma called CTLA-4, which interferes with the protective activity of white blood cells. When the molecule is blocked, the cells behave normally and help fight off cancer.


Mike Brockey of Frederick, Md., was diagnosed with late-stage melanoma in 2008 and tried both conventional and alternative medicines before starting therapy with ipilimumab last September. He received four infusions of the drug every three weeks through November. Though the drug took time to work, he says his latest scans show that his tumors are inactive.









Bristol said it would disclose pricing details of the drug later.



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