Treatment Options for Foot Melanoma

Foot melanoma often goes undetected because people don't notice skin abnormalities in the foot until it's spread to other parts of the body. Melanoma of the foot occurs when there's abnormality with the melanocyte cells, which are responsible for the pigment of the skin. Normally, new skin cells push old cells to the skin surface, where they die. But, when melanoma occurs, new cells start growing at a rapid rate, eventually forming a skin mass of cancerous cells.

Early Stage Treatment

• The best treatment for foot melanoma that hasn't spread to other parts of the body is surgical removal of the melanoma. A surgeon will remove the abnormality by cutting out the surface layer and tissues beneath the skin. There is a great success rate with surgery in eliminating the cancer; the patient, however, will need to schedule frequent exams with her dermatologist to screen for future abnormalities.

Chemotherapy and Radiation

• A foot melanoma that has spread beyond the skin will need surgical removal plus additional treatments. Chemotherapy is an option, which uses medications administered intravenously to kill cancer cells. This treatment regimen lasts four to six months and may need to be repeated.

  Another option for treatment is radiation therapy. During this treatment, X-rays are used to get rid of cancer cells. Although fatigue commonly occurs with this treatment, energy typically returns once the treatment is done.

Immunotherapy Treatment

• Immunotherapy treatment focuses on strengthening the immune system so it can better fight cancer cells in the body. The medications used in this therapy are interferon and interleukin, which may have side effects such as fever, fatigue and headaches.

Clinical Trials

• Researchers are working on new treatment methods for this condition. When participating in a clinical trial, the patient gets access to options that aren't available yet to the rest of the population.

  For example, chemoimmunotherpay is a treatment focused on using medications to boost the effectiveness of chemotherapy and immunotherapy. Side effects may be more severe when using this treatment, but the results of treatment are believed to be better.

  Gene therapy is also in the clinical trial phase, where researchers are studying the possibility of replacing bad genes that are allowing cancer to multiply. Another treatment gene therapists are studying is placing special genes inside cancer cells to make the cancer cells die when medications like chemotherapy are administered.

  If you're interested in clinical trials, talk with your doctor to find a study in your area.