Last September 3rd our partners from Uniwersytet Jagielloński held a conference that brought clinicians and patients together to discuss UM-related therapies.

Since our last Consortium Meeting last year in November, we've been preparing the next steps for the project and creating connections to ensure continuity of the work developed. 

The Melanoma Research Foundation’s CURE OM initiative will host the first Eyes on a Cure: Global Ocular Melanoma Patient and Caregiver Symposium, starting the 19th of November 2021.

Our partners at the University of Liverpool studied which type of immune cells arise in the liver in response to UM metastases as well as which type of molecules UM metastases produce. These findings can be the first step to delevop new treatments against metastatic UM. 

In this study, our partners at the Liverpool Ocular Oncology Research Group (LOORG), investigated the differences between UM cells that are resistant to radiotherapy and the ones that are controlled with the same treatment. Their results suggest that the use of a specific drug named ATM inhibitors, which is already used for the treatment of other cancers, can improve the efficacity of radiotherapy in more resistant tumors.

We bring you a summary of 19 studies including uveal melanoma patients presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology 2020 Annual Meeting.

The largest cancer conference in the world has come and gone, virtually. The UM Cure 2020 prepares you a summary for new data about UM research and COVID-19 impact on the management of cancer patients.

ASCO’20 Scientific Program held a Special Session about the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the management of cancer patients. Cancer patients have higher risk for complications from COVID-19, however it is not clear that anti-cancer treatments increase that risk.

The UM Cure 2020 Consortium met virtually on the 19^th of June for the Progress Review Meeting 2020, to update project results and coordinate further steps.

In this video you can learn about the anatomy of the eye and in which structures uveal melanoma arises.

UM Cure Consortium members collaborated with distinguished ocular oncologists to publish a thorough, scientific and clinical, overview of uveal melanoma, focusing on patient-centered care. 

UM Cure 2020 is following COVID-19 pandemic with concern and is focused now on updating the most useful information for cancer patients, particularly those who have a diagnosis of a rare cancer.

Our partners at the Liverpool Ocular Oncology Research Group conducted a study to evaluate the impact that radiotherapy (used as treatment for UM eye lesions) has on the results obtained with genetic testing. Their study revealed that successful evaluation can be obtained from UM biopsies, irrespective of irradiation status.

Some of the mysteries of uveal melanoma revealed by UMCure2020 researchers: the importance of BAP1 mutation on the immune profile.

Our partners at the Institut Curie have recently published how to further analyze the results from genetic tests performed on UM.

In this brochure you may find a schematic representation of the most important topics about uveal melanoma: who is most affected, how it is diagnosed, preferential treatment option for cancer in the eye, surveillance and metastatic disease managing.

A recent study shows that the analysis of the liquid produced inside of the eye, the aqueous humor, could help to stratify the risk of disease progression in patients with uveal melanoma.

 Our partners, at the Institut Curie, have organized a patient meeting on the 22nd of November where they have discussed clinical and scientific updates regarding UM.   

Having taken place at Champalimaud Foundation, in Lisbon, Portugal, from the 14th to the 16st of November, the consortium reviewed the progress and discussed new future opportunities.

Professor Martine Jager (Leiden University Medical Center) has been awarded with the EVER-ACTA Professor K.K.K. Lundsgaard Medal for her hard work stimulating eye research worldwide.

After the successful MPNE nordics 2019 two weeks before in Gothenburg, the MPNE rare 2019, held in Berlin between 25-27^th of October, was fully dedicated to rare melanomas. UM Cure 2020 was there covering and actively participating.

This study, done by our partners at the Institut Curie, compared the genetic alterations of  the same uveal melanoma (UM) lesions, retrieved before and after treatment with radiation.

The ESMO Congress 2019 took place in Barcelona, Spain, from the September 27^th to the 1^st of October. Six uveal melanoma studies were presented. UM Cure 2020 was there to participate and cover the meeting.

In this study, investigators from Leiden University, discovered that the mutations that are present since the early development of UM lesions (GNA11 or GNAQ mutations) are not correlated with the degree of inflammation.

The Leiden University Medical Centre research group led by Prof. Martine Jager, members of UM Cure 2020 consortium, published last month the results of two original research projects.

The UM CURE 2020 Consortium has published a position paper in Cancers journal to alert the scientific community of the differences between UM and other melanomas.

Our partners at the Institute Curie (Paris, France) have recently published in American Association for Cancer Research June issue a paper that explains the importance of genetic testing in the setting of metastatic UM, namely how it can help predict treatment responses. 

The OcuMel UK Annual Patient Conference took place at Wokingham, United Kingdom, between 5-7th of July.

The UM CURE 2020 Progress Review Meeting 2019 took place at the Institut Curie (Paris, France) from the 28^th to the 29^th of June.

In a perspective paper authored by members of UM Cure 2020, ERN-EURACAN representatives describe how this initiative will improve the care of uveal melanoma patients.

At a recently published comment on Nature, Dr. Bettina Ryll provides a sharp reflection, on how a clinical trial may often be seen, in the perspective of a researcher or promotor and, in the view of a patient or his/her family.

Professor Sarah Coupland (University of Liverpool, Liverpool) has been awarded with the Royal College of Pathologists Excellence Awards.

Four additional abstracts presented at ASCO brought some insights for mapping the mechanisms of metastatic uveal melanoma, future therapeutic targets and better understanding of current treatment options.

UM Cure 2020 Project status was presented during ASCO by the Chair of the Scientific Advisory Board of the consortium, who also chaired a session of poster discussion on Rare Melanoma Subtypes.

New study from our partners at Leiden University evaluates how the immune system can contribute to inflammation in UM.

New study from our partners at Leiden University evaluates if certain mutations can influence the degree of inflammation in the tumour.

A recent study from the Liverpool Ocular Oncology Research Group (LOORG) evaluates the behaviour of uveal melanoma (UM) cells and its importance when treating metastatic disease.

A recent study from the Liverpool Ocular Oncology Research Group explains the importance of the innovative way uveal melanoma cells are studied in the laboratory.

A recent study shows that the analysis of the liquid produced inside of the eye, the aqueous humor, could help in the management of patients with uveal melanoma.

Our partners at  Jagiellonian University  (Krakow, Poland) are working on a book entitled "Ocular Oncology", covering the different types of tumours that can affect the eye and how to treat them.

Congratulations to Samar Alsafadi for winning the 2019 Women in Cancer Research Scholar Award at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR)!

 “The focus is on the most burning Melanoma question: where do we loose our people to Melanoma? What are the last developments that could prevent that? And what can we do about it?”

Researchers at the Laboratory of Preclinical Investigation at the Institut Curie in Paris (France) have been developing animal models of human uveal melanoma and liver metastases as early tools in drug development.

This work, conducted by Dr. Alda Rola from the Liverpool Ocular Oncology Research Group (LOORG) led by Professor Sarah Coupland, aims to find out the effectiveness of the LUMPO3 in predicting how often uveal melanoma patients should have liver scans

Professor Rubens Belfort Neto, MD, PhD, explains how radiation works in the treatment of uveal melanoma.

In the last UM Cure 2020 Patient’s meeting, Dr. Emma Dorris ran a workshop entitled “The Art of writing to be understood”, where early career researchers worked with experienced patients on previously published research summaries.

Having taken place at Liverpool University, in Liverpool, England, from the 29th to the 1st of December, this was a unique gathering that emphasized the importance of consortia as driving forces for the development of new therapies for uveal melanoma.

In this video Dr. Jesse Berry explains the concept of liquid biopsies.

In this video Dr. Jesse Berry explains the differences between uveal melanoma and retinoblastoma.

Professor Rubens Belfort Neto, MD, PhD, explains why brachytherapy is used in the treatment of uveal melanoma.

In this video Dr. Jesse Berry talks about the importance of referral centres in the treatment of uveal melanoma and the crucial role of patient organizations.

In this video Dr. Jesse Berry explains how and why to perform a biopsy in a patient with uveal melanoma.

Professor Rubens Belfort Neto, MD, PhD, discusses the differences between radiation and enucleation for the treatment of uveal melanoma.

In this video, Tamara Rimmer, uveal melanoma patient and Ocumel UK Patient Advocate, talks about why it is advantageous, for both patients and physicians, to have better informed patients regarding their disease. 

In this video, Tamara Rimmer, uveal melanoma patient and Ocumel UK Patient Advocate, explains how a patient becomes a patient advocate.

In this video, Tamara Rimmer, uveal melanoma patient and Ocumel UK Patient Advocate, talks about the role of Patients' Groups.

Professor Ruben Belfort Neto, MD, PhD, talks about the importance of patient groups' when dealing with uveal melanoma.

The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2018 was awarded jointly to James P. Allison and Tasuku Honjo "for their discovery of cancer therapy by inhibition of negative immune regulation."

Professor Ruben Belfort Neto, MD, PhD, talks about how the treatment of the primary tumour (in the eye) affects the development of metastatic disease (most often in the liver).

Sarah Coupland (MD, PhD) and Hans Grossniklaus (MD, PhD) discuss the importance of pathology and why it should not become a dying art.

A Symposium to commemorate this occasion took place in Collegium Maius of Jagiellonian University in Krakow on Sept 7^th, 2018.

Professor Ruben Belfort Neto, MD, PhD, talks about the concept of risk factors in uveal melanoma

Dealing with cancer has not only a physical but may also have a mental impact in the patients and in those that support them.

The National Cancer Institute created an important segment on suggestions on how to deal with feelings that may arise during the process. 

Interview with Jacqueline Franken from the Stichting Melanoom organization at the MPNE Rare 2017 conference

Recently published on Ophthalmology, a paper from one of our partners explains to the Ophthalmology community the breakthroughs that were achieved with the TCGA project.

In this study, the authors used UM PDXs to evaluate the efficacy of the selumetinib, a targeted therapy medication aimed at blocking a specific part of one of the pathways responsible for the appearance of UM cancer cells, alone or in combination with other therapies.

Interview with Andrew Evans at the Melanoma Patient Network Europe Rare 2017 conference. 

As the ARVO Ocular Oncogenesis and Oncology Conference comes to an end we cannot help but smile when looking back and see all that was achieved during these past days.

Dr. Sergio Roman-Roman talked about recent findings regarding uveal melanoma at the 25th Biennial Congress of the European Association for Cancer Research.

The World Ophthalmology Congress, organized by the International Council of Ophthalmology, was an outstanding meeting! It was really motivating to see how multiple groups across the world are fighting uveal melanoma, both in the clinic and research settings.

In this paper, the authors discuss the various treatments evaluated in the setting of metastatic uveal melanoma, including systemic chemotherapy, immunotherapy, targeted agents against the MAPK pathway, and liver-directed therapies.

For the past four years Dr. Mehmet Doğrusöz from the Leiden University performed research under the supervision of Prof. Martine J. Jager and studied genetic prognostic parameters in uveal melanoma.

“Together with a better understanding of the biology of the disease and the recent delivery of relatively large studies, this holds hope that new and more effective treatment options will become available for UM patients with metastatic disease in the near future.”
 

The PhD Thesis defense took place at Institut Curie the 29^th of May, 2018

Congratulations to Institut Curie for the great work.

Congratulations to Professor Richard Marais, UMCURE2020 consortium member, for being elected as Fellow of the Royal Society. 

The Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) has presented Professor Sarah Coupland with a ‘Distinguished Service Award’ at the 2018 Association’s annual meeting.

The UMCure 2020 consortium has been profiled by Science Impact, a series of high-quality science reports designed to enable the dissemination of research impact to all.

In patients with metastatic uveal melanoma, the combination of selumetinib plus dacarbazine had a tolerable safety profile but did not significantly improve PFS compared with placebo plus dacarbazine. Despite the results of this study, additional assessment of MEK inhibitors in uveal melanoma is warranted.

The 2017 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting was held in Chicago, Illinois, 2nd-6th June 2017.

Having taken place on 18th January at the Institut Curie in Paris, France, the second meeting of the UM Cure 2020 Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) gave UMCure 2020 SAB members and partners the chance to consider the consortium's successes obtained during its first two years, as well as look forward to the work ahead.

José Baselga received the ESMO Lifetime Achievement Award, celebrating a four-decade career of outstanding relevance in clinical oncology, at the ESMO 2017 conference in Madrid, in his native Spain.

Their Royal Highnesses Queen Maxima and King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands visited the Champalimaud Centre for the Unknown on 11th October 2017, where they were presented to the UMCure 2020 project.

MPNE Rare 2017 was held this past weekend in Leiden University Medical Center, Netherlands.

An international team, which includes several UMCure 2020 participants, has just identified four distinct UM subtypes with clinical relevance.

Having taken place at Jagiellonian University, in Krakow, Poland, June 15-17 2017, this was a unique gathering that emphasized the importance of consortia as driving forces for the development of new therapies for rare diseases.

"Enthusiasm gets things done."

Our congratulations to Professor Coupland!

Dr. Richard Marais presents the UM Cure 2020 project.

24 - 27th March 2017 at Institut Curie, Paris

A three-year postdoctoral position funded by the EU Horizon 2020 Programme is available in the laboratory of Prof. Richard Marais to identify and validate novel therapeutic approaches for the treatment of metastatic uveal melanoma (UM).

UM Cure 2020 joins in the celebration.

Applications closed.

Professor Sarah Coupland, head of the Liverpool Ocular Oncology Group, was elected Vice-president of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmogy, one the foremost scientific organizations in opthalmology worldwide. 

UM CURE 2020 Kick-off meeting

The kick-off meeting of the UM Cure 2020 project took place January 22-23, 2016, in the exceptional environment of the Champalimaud Foundation in Lisbon, Portugal