Multimodality therapy in the treatment of regionally inoperable melanomas and sarcomas

Nine patients with regionally inoperable malignant melanoma or soft tissue sarcoma were treated with combinations of intra-arterial chemotherapy, immunotherapy and operation or irradiation or both. Three of the heretofore untreatable patients with melanoma remain clinically free of detectable metastases at three years, three and one-half years and one and one-half years from their recurrence. One nodular melanoma remains well controlled two years after diagnosis, while an additional patient is free of disease several months after therapy. Two of the patients with melanoma died within a year of the onset of the recurrence but maintained the affected limb in useful condition until the time of their death. Two of the three patients with sarcoma remain free of disease at ten and four years. One patient who was known to have distant metastatic disease at the onset of the treatment currently is hospitalized for further therapy for tumor in the para-aortic lymph nodes.