[Cases of refractory testicular cancer treated with all trans-retinoic acid]

We reported two cases of chemotherapy-refractory testicular cancer treated with all trans-retinoic acid (ATRA). Case 1. A 21-year-old male patient underwent salvage surgery for lung metastasis which had developed after treatment with three different cisplatin-based chemotherapy regimens for malignant teratoma. After recovery from surgery, he was treated with oral ATRA at daily dose 80 mg/m2 for four weeks. Case 2. A-45-year-old patient suffered from lung metastasis after orchiectomy for teratocarcinoma. The patient failed to achieve a complete response despite two different cisplatin-based chemotherapy and high dose chemotherapy regimens with bone marrow rescue. He was treated with oral ATRA for five weeks. Both patients showed disease progression with increase in tumor size and elevation of tumor marker during ATRA therapy. Side effects were acceptable except the headache in Case 2, who needed a dose reduction of ATRA. In conclusion, oral ATRA with this dose failed to show clinical antitumor activity in patients with refractory testicular cancer.