Jimmy Carter, 96, Is the Longest Living US President, Beating Cancer That Spread to His Brain

Carter was diagnosed with metastatic melanoma, an aggressive form of skin cancer that had spread through his body, in 2015. For treatment, he went through immunotherapy which harnesses the power of one’s own immune system to fight off cancer cells as well as surgery and radiation. This thorough treatment plan was necessary, especially since Carter’s melanoma had spread to his brain. Turns out, it was all worth it. Once going public with his cancer battle a few months later, he shared in December 2015 that an MRI found no evidence of cancer left.

Related: How is Former President Jimmy Carter A Melanoma Survivor Coping During COVID-19?

Since serving in the White House from 1977 to 1981, Carter has attended every following presidential inauguration. However, he and his wife Rosalyn announced they would not be attending President-elect Joe Biden’s swearing in ceremony on January 20th. It’s unclear the exact reason why the Carters won’t attend the inauguration, but seeing as they’re both in their 90’s and the coronavirus pandemic is still ongoing, that may have contributed to the decision.

Metastatic melanoma survivor Mary Elizabeth Williams is an immunotherapy success story

Navigating Metastatic Melanoma

Among skin cancers, melanoma is the most aggressive form of the disease. A metastatic diagnosis means he cancer has spread to other parts of the body, which in Carter’s case was his brain. However, thanks to years of research, there are still treatment options for those battling metastatic melanoma. Carter’s treatment plan of surgery, radiation, and immunotherapy is often considered the most effective route for patients to take.

Surgery

Seeing as melanoma often presents itself as a physical mark on the skin, the goal of surgery is to remove the cancerous mark and its cells. This if often effective on its own in early-stage melanoma cases, but since metastatic melanoma spreads, other measures need to be taken. That’s where immunotherapy and radiation comes in.

Immunotherapy

Immunotherapy is a treatment plan that has revolutionized cancer care in many fields, and harnesses the power of a patient’s own immune system to fight off cancer cells. However, like any treatment, immunotherapy can come with its own set of side-effects. These side-effects can include a severe rash or severe diarrhea. The risk of experiencing side-effects depends on the amount of immunotherapy drugs you’re taking. For those prescribed one medicine, there’s up to a 15% chance side-effects will occur; for those prescribed two medications, the risk increases up to 50%.

Related: Blood Test Could Predict the Best Type of Treatment for Metastatic Melanoma

"When immunotherapy came on the market it was such an exciting time for everyone involved in the care of melanoma, the main reason being is it went from this scary unmanageable cancer with no treatments to one that could potentially have a long lasting result with patients absolutely never having to worry about their melanoma," Dr. Cecilia Larocca, a dermatologist at Dana Farber Cancer Institute, told SurvivorNet in a previous interview.

Dr. Cecilia Larocca explains how immunotherapy can tremendously impact advanced melanoma treatment 

Radiation

Radiation is sometimes considered the most uncommon treatment option for melanoma, but when it comes to metastatic melanoma, it can be extremely effective under certain circumstances. For patients who have stage 4 metastatic melanoma which has spread to their brains (which was the case for Carter), this can be an especially effective treatment plan.

Related: Melanoma Treatment Has "Come a Long Way"

“We use very focused radiation, either stereotactic radiation or gamma knife radiation, which is essentially 200 beams of radiation that will target just that tumor, and try to burn out that tumor so that we don’t affect the normal brain and the cognitive functioning of patients,” Dr. Anna Pavlick, a medical oncologist at Weill Cornell Medicine, told SurvivorNet in a previous interview.

Due to the severity of the diagnosis, this form of treatment is often very intense and thorough. However, Dr. Pavlick assures that it has shown great results for patients battling this disease.

Dr. Anna Pavlick explains how radiation can help stage 4 metastatic melanoma patients

Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.