Drug Approved for Late-Stage Melanoma

One of the interesting things to note about this article "http://www.businessweek.com/lifestyle/content/healthday/651283.html" is the mention of the molecule CTLA-4 and it's role in suppressing the immune system. For years the supplements resveratrol and curcumin have been touted anecdotally as supplements for cancer patients, with curcumin specifically linked to aide in melanoma suppression, "http://health.usnews.com/usnews/health/briefs/cancer/hb050711a.htm".

One of the interesting things to note about this article "http://www.businessweek.com/lifestyle/content/healthday/651283.html" is the mention of the molecule CTLA-4 and it's role in suppressing the immune system. For years the supplements resveratrol and curcumin have been touted anecdotally as supplements for cancer patients, with curcumin specifically linked to aide in melanoma suppression, "http://health.usnews.com/usnews/health/briefs/cancer/hb050711a.htm". However it has been found that both resveratrol and curcumin are immunosuppressants and upregulate CTLA-4,"http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17177975".

These conflicting articles, both from 'authoritative' sources, either demonstrate the still unknowns of medicine or they each serve their own unexposed commercial purpose and raise questions similar to "Why would a melanoma research hospital find that curcumin, a known CTLA-4 upregulator, actually suppresses melanoma while the drug industry's friend, the FDA, approves a drug, with serious side effects, that is designed to interfere with CTLA-4?". While CTLA-4 is obviously an immunosuppressant is it really the true culprit of melanoma's progression?