[Intralesional therapy of melanoma metastases with recombinant interferon-beta]

In ten patients with metastasizing melanomas, discontinuous intratumoral treatment with recombinant interferon beta (rIFN-beta) was administered into 19 cutaneous or palpable subcutaneous metastases. Among the 16 metastases treated with 5 x 10(6) IU per injection, 8 showed partial or complete remission. No recurrence was observed during the 4-9-month follow-up period. There was no regression in 3 metastases treated with 3 x 10(6) IU rINF-beta per injection. No systemic antineoplastic effects were observed in any of the cases. The IFN-beta serum levels were measurably increased following intratumoral application. Local treatment led to a significant increase in (2'-5')oligoadenylate synthetase in the mononuclear blood cells and in the serum. Side-effects of the treatment were moderate; there was a temporary increase in transaminases, a decrease in thrombocytes and influenza-like symptoms. The results show that IFN-beta has a dose-dependent antitumour effect on malignant melanomas.