SAN ANTONIO — If detected early, most skin cancer patients can be treated with surgery or radiation therapy.

• FDA approved Libtayo as first and only treatment for advanced cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma
• 150 patients that have taken part in various trials of Libtayo
• Libtayo becomes available to U.S. patients in a couple of weeks

But those diagnosed with an advanced form of skin cancer will now have a new option thanks to FDA approval and research done in the Alamo City.

“The patient’s tumor shrinks and continues to shrink with time,” said Dr. Kyriakos Papadopoulos, Co-director of clinical research with the South Texas Accelerated Research Therapeutics in San Antonio.

A breakthrough in cancer-fighting medicine treats advanced forms of skin cancer. The Food and Drug Administration approved Libtayo or cemiplimab-rwlc as the first and only treatment for advanced cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma or known as CSCC. Researchers say the new immunotherapy allows the immune system to recognize, attack and successfully kill tumors.

“Patients appear to tolerate the treatment well for squamous cell cancer of the skin. About 45 percent of patients see an objective response in their cancer and a majority of these patients over 60 percent continue to have benefit from the treatment 6 months and much longer,” said Papadopoulos.

Lead by Dr. Papadopoulos, a team of researchers with The START Center began testing the new drug made by Regeneron and Sanofi three years ago.

“The day the oncologist said I can’t give you any medicine that doesn’t do you any good, maybe we can get you into a drug trial. On the way home we talked about updating my will,” said Dale Biggs a START patient who was treated with Libtayo.

The San Antonio patient was diagnosed with the advanced skin cancer in late 2015. He fought the cancer even as it spread across his head and part of his face. After numerous doctors and various failed treatments, he was the first patient to get the experimental drug.

“After two or three weeks, you could tell the tumors were getting softer. They were so big, I couldn’t get this hat on. So, I had to wear a stretchy beanie, but after two or three weeks the tumors were getting softer. After four weeks, some of them started going away. And finally, after six or eight weeks, I could get this hat back on,” said Biggs.

Biggs is one of more than 150 patients that have taken part in various trials of Libtayo. Fifty-three of those patients with different types cancers were treated at START located in San Antonio’s Medical Center.

“This drug has obviously been approved for squamous cell carcinoma of the skin, but potentially may have activity and be beneficial to a number of other patients with a variety of tumor types,” said Papadopoulos.

Libtayo becomes available to U.S. patients in a couple of weeks.