Rationale and Motivation Sample Clauses

Rationale and Motivation. ‌ Melanoma and immunotherapy The European incidence of malignant melanoma varies from 3–5/100000 in Mediterranean countries to 12–35/100000 in Nordic countries. The incidence of melanoma has been rising steadily over the last 40 years [4, 5]. In recent years, the introduction of immunotherapy with immune checkpoint-inhibitors (ICIs) have significantly improved the outcome of melanoma patients and have become standard of care [6, 7]. However, immunotherapy treatment is associated with specific immune-related adverse events (irAEs). irAEs possibly result in a diminished health-related quality of life (HRQoL) [7]. With immunotherapy becoming standard care in advanced melanoma patients, an increasing number of patients experience symptoms of irAEs, most commonly occurring in skin, liver, gastrointestinal, pulmonary and endocrine organs [6, 7]. Inadequate symptom monitoring and reporting might lead to worsening of the adverse events and also more frequent emergency department visits and hospital admissions [8, 9]. Renal Cell Carcinoma treatments Kidney cancer accounts for 5% and 3% of all adult malignancies in males and females, respectively, representing the seventh most common cancer in men, and the tenth in women [10], corresponding to about 400000 patients globally each year, and 115000 patients in Europe. Renal Cell Carcinoma (RCC) accounts for about 80% of all kidney cancers. Tyrosine kinase inhibitors targeting vascular endothelial growth factor receptors (VEGFRs) have been the first-line standard of care for the last decade [11]; however, almost all patients acquire resistance over time. The recent introduction of immune checkpoint inhibitors has further improved the outcome of those patients. Presently, the monoclonal antibody Nivolumab, and its immune combination with the Ipilimumab have been registered for use in patients refractory to VEGFR-targeting agents as well as in the first line treatment of patients with poor or intermediate risk features. Furthermore, combination of immune checkpoint inhibitors with anti-VEGFR agents [12, 13] are emerging as novel treatment options. Immune checkpoint inhibitors have a specific toxicity profile which is challenging the historical oncologists’ practices. Indeed, the clinical management of these often ill-defined irAEs is new to many oncologists. Moreover, despite most of them remaining mild in intensity, around 10% of patients treated with these agents will develop severe, sometimes life-threatening, dysimmun...