NF-κB as potential target in the treatment of melanoma

The RAS/MAP kinase pathway has attracted attention because activating mutations of the BRAF serine/threonine kinase was described in over 50% of melanomas. Very recently, selective and potent BRAF inhibitors have been developed. Several other signal transduction pathways have been found to be constitutively active or mutated in other subsets of melanoma tumors that are potentially targetable with new agents. Among these, NF kappa B is another pathway that melanoma tumors use to achieve survival, proliferation and resistance to apoptosis. Inhibition of NF kappa B activation appears to be a very promising option for anti-cancer therapies.