Metastatic melanoma survivor trusts UT MD Anderson’s expertise and research

Joe Eastin was first diagnosed with melanoma on his left ear in 2012. The Dallas resident had surgery at home to treat the cancer and two more surgeries to treat melanoma recurrences.

In 2017, he came to UT MD Anderson for a second opinion.

“My doctors in Dallas were great,” says Joe. “I’d had multiple surgeries, so I just wanted to see if UT MD Anderson recommended any further treatment.”

He showed no evidence of disease, and after looking over Joe’s scans, head and neck surgeon Neil Gross, M.D., recommended routine surveillance. The plan was for Joe to continue regular skin checks with his local dermatologist, as well as six-month follow-ups at UT MD Anderson.

Things went well for several years. Then, in January 2022, Joe’s dermatologist biopsied a mole that had darkened over several months. It turned out to be a second melanoma diagnosis – this time in his right chest wall near his shoulder.

He opted for surgery at UT MD Anderson, so surgical oncologist Jennifer Wargo, M.D., removed the lesion and two lymph nodes in his right armpit. A biopsy of the lymph nodes showed that the cancer had not spread beyond his chest wall.

For the next two years, Joe kept up with his follow-up visits and practiced sun safety. As a business owner and married father of four, his work and family kept him busy. 

Immunotherapy helps treat metastatic melanoma

In late 2024, after a PET-CT scan and biopsy, Joe learned that the melanoma had spread to his left ribcage. Because of the tumor’s location, it involved bone and soft tissue.

“If I had heard that 12 years earlier, I might have reacted differently,” recalls Joe, who was 54 at the time. “But by then, I’d had a history with melanoma. So, I approached it like, ‘OK, what do we have to do? What are the mechanics that we need to take care of this and make it go away?’”

After speaking to his care team, Joe chose to pursue treatment at UT MD Anderson.

His treatment plan included neoadjuvant immunotherapy to help shrink the tumor, then surgery to remove the tumor.

Joe completed three doses of the immunotherapy drugs ipilimumab and nivolumab under the care of melanoma medical oncologist Hussein Tawbi, M.D., Ph.D. These immune checkpoint inhibitors work by removing the “brakes” cancer cells use to keep the immune system from attacking them. This allows the immune system to fight off cancer.

“In less than three months, the immunotherapy pretty much got rid of all the cancer cells in the soft tissue and shrunk the cancer in the bone by about 50%,” says Joe. “It was pretty amazing that immunotherapy alone did that.”

On Feb. 27, 2025, thoracic surgeon Stephen Swisher, M.D., performed surgery to remove the tumor from Joe’s chest wall, including his left fourth rib.

His first scans after surgery showed that the treatment worked well. He continues to take nivolumab as an adjuvant therapy to kill off any remaining cancer cells and lower the risk of recurrence.

“Dr. Tawbi did a great job of explaining how immunotherapy works,” Joe notes. “He said it's going to look at all the cells and say, ‘That's a good cell; it’s fine. That's a bad cell; we're going to get rid of it. That's another cell, and we’re not really sure if it’s bad, so we're going to get rid of it, too.’”

Joe has had some fatigue, minor digestive issues and some skin discoloration from the immunotherapy. But his side effects have gotten a little better since he now just takes nivolumab.

“I know the treatment is working, so to me, it’s well worth it,” he says. “So far, so good.”

He continues to show no evidence of disease progression or recurrence.

Excited about the future of immunotherapy research

Joe has now navigated melanoma, recurrences and a metastatic melanoma diagnosis.

“It’s made me look at my life and schedule and ask myself, ‘What’s essential?’ I’ve tried to do things that I feel are more essential and more of what I want to do,” he says. “I want to make sure I’m making time for myself, my family and good friends. So, it’s been about reducing noise to create space so that when those essential things come up, I’m ready.”

He’s thankful for the support of his family, friends and care team.

“My doctors know what they’re doing, and I trust them,” he says. “I think the science around advanced melanoma treatment is pretty amazing.  I appreciate the thoughtful research UT MD Anderson has done and continues to do around immunotherapy.”

Joe learned even more about that research when he attended the James P. Allison Institute™ 3rd Annual Scientific Symposium, which UT MD Anderson held on Oct. 24, 2025.

“It was an amazing and humbling experience having five Nobel Prize recipients in one room, on one stage, led by Dr. James Allison – who actually developed ipilimumab, one of the immunotherapy drugs I took,” he says.

Joe is also grateful for the immunotherapy research Tawbi and Wargo have done for melanoma and is excited to see how it can be used to treat more types of cancer.

“That could potentially change the world,” he says. “There is never a good time to get cancer. But the people and the science that exist today are helping find solutions and cures for more cancers. So, that’s enough reason to stay positive.”

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