Treating melanoma with a cream

A prescription cream containing the compound imiquimod has been shown to effectively treat melanoma in mice. Imiquimod has several tumor fighting elements, but one of the more complex is its ability to modify the body’s immune response. A team of researchers at the Medical University of Vienna, Austria, identified a new way in which imiquimod modifies the immune system to clear tumors in a mouse model of melanoma, the most deadly form of skin cancer. Specifically, the team found that topical application of imiquimod leads to the recruitment of immune cells known as plasmacytoid DCs to the site of the tumor. Moreover, exposure to imiquimod at the site of the tumor converts these cells into tumor-cell killers.