In this phase II clinical trial of 53 patients, tumor growth was delayed by almost six months, whereas, typically, these cancers begin spreading again eight weeks after chemotherapy treatment, researchers say.

The study was presented today by Domingo Perez, M.D., the lead author of the study who is a former oncology fellow at Mayo Clinic and is now in private practice in Minneapolis.

"The clinical benefit may seem small, but in the world of melanoma where there is very little progress, this is certainly a strong indication that the combination of chemotherapy with an antiangiogenic agent may be a valid treatment strategy for these patients. But the only way to know this for certain is a head to head comparison with the standard course of treatment," Dr. Perez says.

Melanoma that has metastasized (spread) to other parts of the body is one of the most difficult cancers to treat. Though rare, it is also the most deadliest of skin cancers because it does not respond well to chemotherapy. About one melanoma patient dies every hour (8,000 every year) in the United States, and 60,000 new cases are diagnosed annually, Dr. Markovic says.