News & Publications

Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) is not a common skin cancer, but it is a very dangerous one. The number of cases has increased dramatically in the past decade. Luckily, knowledge and treatment options have surged, too. Paul Nghiem, MD, PhD, director of the Skin Oncology Clinical Program at the Seattle C...

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Approximately one-third of Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) patients eventually develop distant metastatic disease. Little is known about whether the location of the primary lesion is predictive of initial distant metastatic site, or if survival likelihood differs depending on the metastatic site. Such d...

Dear friends of Merkel cell carcinoma research, During this time of giving and celebrations, I want to let you know how appreciative our Merkel Team is of your support.  This year was one of many exciting milestones that I am thrilled to share with you.   We have written an annual update lette...

A study with the longest follow-up of immunotherapy as the first line treatment for patients with advanced MCC has showed improved overall survival and response rate compared to controls. The study included 50 treatment naïve adults with advanced MCC who received a median of 10.5 doses of pembroliz...

This study analyzed outcomes from the care of 8252 Merkel cell carcinoma patients at 1147 facilities in the US. It found that patients did better if cared for at higher volume / larger facilities. Such facilities tend to follow evidence-based guidelines, and are more likely to provide multi-discipli...

3 generations of mentor-mentees gather in Aomori Japan at the Japanese Society for Investigative Dermatology. DOM members Drs Masaoki Kawasumi, Tomoko Akaike, and Paul Nghiem, all gave plenary session talks. Left to right: Tomoko Akaike is a Japanese dermatologist doing a clinical research fe...

Parents are always looking out for their kids. It’s rare when it happens the other way around. But Susan Manber’s 13-year-old daughter saved her life. It happened one afternoon, not long after Hurricane Sandy had wreaked havoc on the New York City area. “We’d been without power for two weeks...

On September 9, 2019 in Seattle, over 280 patients, family members, clinicians, scientists, pharmaceutical partners, and trainees from across the United States gathered for the 14th annual Merkel cell carcinoma Dinner Meeting. The evening began with a bit of social gathering, beautiful music (vio...

Living with Merkel Cell Carcinoma is a free workshop series organized by CancerCare and can be attended over the phone or online. Part I of the series, Treatment Perspectives on Merkel Cell Carcinoma, will take place on November 15, 2019, 1:30-2:30 pm ET and will feature a panel of experts includ...