Research & Publications - Current Research

Melanoma Research

Gavin P. Robertson, Ph.D.

Malignant melanoma is the seventh most common cancer in the United States, affecting 1 in 71 Americans. The incidence of this disease is increasing at the rate of approximately 4% per year, making it the cancer with the second fastest growth rate. Statistically, one American dies from melanoma every hour.

Dr. Robertson’s research program focuses on dissecting the functioning of proteins causing melanoma in order to tailor and develop more effective treatments for patients suffering from this disease. The ultimate goal is to provide a clearer understanding of the biology of this form of human cancer, as well as produce new tools for diagnosis, staging and clinical management of melanoma.

Dr. Robertson also directs the Melanoma Therapeutics program at Penn State College of Medicine. The researchers in this program are focused on developing new and more potent therapeutics to treat melanoma. Examples include gene therapy to shrink tumors and the identification of less toxic more potent drugs against melanoma. Once these agents are identified, the faculty of the Department of Dermatology evaluates them for efficacy in the clinical setting. This interaction between the research and clinical components at Penn State is an ideal situation for developing and testing skin cancer therapeutics.

If you would like to have more information about our research programs, funding, or volunteering for a study, please feel free to contact one of our Clinical Trials Coordinators, Silvia Gosik, L.P.N., CCRC or Amy Longenecker, L.P.N., CCRC  at (717) 531-5136.