[Experiences with high-dose cisplatin therapy in metastasized malignant melanoma]

14 patients with advanced malignant melanoma were treated in 36 therapy cycles with cisplatin. 8 patients had been pretreated with dacarbazine and 6 had received additional BCG immunotherapy. 4 patients had been irradiated after surgical removal of lymph node metastases. All patients showed significant tumor progression. 4 patients were treated showing ultimately disseminated melanoma with widespread visceral involvement. 5 patients with lymph node metastases had been operated radically and were treated postoperatively. Cisplatin was administered as a 24-h high-dose therapy (200 mg or 120-200 mg/m2) under forced mannitol diuresis, treatment cycles were repeated monthly. Of all the patients, 1 showed complete remission of supraclavicular metastases lasting for 6 months until now. 1 patient showed an initial minor response with subsequent stabilization without appearance of additional metastases for 1 year. 2 patients who had received cisplatin postoperatively showed no reappearance of tumor growth for 8 months up until now. 11 patients showed no change or progression of disease, 6 of them had received only one therapy cycle. Under clinical conditions, side effects of cisplatin treatment can be managed satisfactorily, no irreversible kidney damage could be observed under forced diuresis. As far as the above-mentioned results are concerned, antineoplastic activity of cisplatin as to advanced malignant melanoma must be considered to be of limited benefit using cisplatin as a single-agent treatment. Improvement of results might be obtained using cisplatin in a combination therapy together with other antineoplastic agents, which at the present time are being investigated in several prospective trials.