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Medications for Skin Cancer

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By Editorial Team

3 min read

Reviewed by: HU Medical Review Board | Last reviewed: May 2025 | Last updated: May 2025

Many medicines can be used to treat skin cancer. The type used will depend on the type of skin cancer, the stage of the cancer, and the person’s overall health.1

Some of the drugs used to treat skin cancer include:1

  • Chemotherapy – Uses drugs to kill cancer cells
  • Targeted therapy – Uses drugs to target specific molecules on cancer cells
  • Immunotherapy – Uses the body's immune system to fight cancer
  • Topicals – Applied directly to the skin to treat skin cancer

Melanoma

Drugs are used to treat melanoma when it:2

  • Cannot be removed with surgery (unresectable) or
  • Has spread to distant parts of the body (metastasized).

Drugs can be used as adjuvant treatment for certain advanced melanomas. This is given after the primary treatment. The goal is to kill any cancer cells that may remain following the primary treatment, to lower the risk that the cancer returns. Adjuvant therapy can be given after surgery, radiation therapy, or chemotherapy.2

Targeted therapy

Targeted therapies target specific molecules involved in the growth and spread of cancer cells or that are unique to cancer cells. In melanoma, these molecules include:2

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  • BRAF – A gene that is often mutated in melanoma cells
  • MEK – A protein that helps BRAF to work
  • KIT – A protein found on some melanoma cells

Targeted therapies that treat melanoma with BRAF mutations include:2

  • Tafinlar® (dabrafenib), possibly in combination with Mekinist® (trametinib), a MEK inhibitor
  • Zelboraf® (vemurafenib), possibly in combination with Cotellic® (cobimetinib), another MEK inhibitor
  • Braftovi (encorafenib) and Mektovi (binimetinib), a combination targeted therapy to treat melanoma that cannot be surgically removed or metastatic melanoma with a BRAF V600E or V600K mutation
  • Gleevec® (imatinib), which may be used for advanced melanoma with c-KIT mutation

Immunotherapy

Drugs called immune checkpoint inhibitors prevent melanoma cells from hiding from your immune system. These medicines include:2

  • Keytruda® (pembrolizumab)
  • Opdivo® (nivolumab)
  • Yervoy® (ipilimumab)
  • Tecentriq® (atezolizumab) or Tecentriq HybrezaTM (atezolizumab and hyaluronidase-tqjs), used together with vemurafenib and cobimetinib targeted therapies
  • Opdualag® (nivolumab and relatlimab-rmbw)

Other forms of immunotherapy used to treat certain forms of melanoma include:2

  • Interleukin-2
  • Intralesional talimogene laherparepvec
  • Intralesional Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) vaccine

Chemotherapy

This treatment is an option for some people. But chemotherapy is not usually the first choice for melanoma treatment.2

Basal cell carcinoma (BCC)

Topical drugs can be used to treat some BCC if surgery, curettage and electrodesiccation, or radiation therapy are not possible. These are applied to the skin.3

Approved options for thin BCC include:3

  • Fluorouracil
  • Imiquimod

These drugs are only used for BCC that is unlikely to return (recur). For higher-risk BCC, more effective treatments are available.3

Targeted therapies are available to treat certain forms of advanced BCC. They include:3

  • Odomzo® (sonidegib)
  • Erivedge® (vismodegib)
  • Libtayo® (cemiplimab-rwlc)

Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC)

Squamous cell carcinoma in situ (SCC or Bowen’s disease) may be treated with topical drugs. Two of these drugs include:3

  • Fluorouracil
  • Imiquimod

Chemotherapy may be used with radiation therapy for SCC which is likely to return. This may be used if surgery is not an option or if it has spread to the lymph nodes.3

Libtayo, Unloxcyt, and Keytruda immunotherapy drugs may be used to treat certain forms of advanced SCC.3

Actinic keratosis

Topical drugs are often used to treat actinic keratosis. Drugs approved include:4

  • Fluorouracil
  • Imiquimod
  • Diclofenac
  • Tirbanibulin

Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC)

As of April 2025, the immune checkpoint inhibitors used to treat MCC include:5

  • Bavencio® (avelumab)
  • Opdivo® (nivolumab)
  • Keytruda® (pembrolizumab)
  • Zynyz™ (retifanlimab)

Chemotherapy may also be used to shrink or slow the spread of MCC.6

Kaposi sarcoma

Chemotherapy is a standard treatment for Kaposi sarcoma. If only a few lesions exist, the drug may be injected directly into them. If the cancer is widespread, chemotherapy may be used systemically.7

Liposomal doxorubicin is the main chemotherapy drug for Kaposi sarcoma.7

Pomalyst® (pomalidomide) may be used as an immunotherapy to treat certain forms of Kaposi sarcoma.7

Treatment results and side effects can vary from person to person. This treatment information is not meant to replace professional medical advice. Talk to your doctor about what to expect before starting and while taking any treatment.