[Failure of therapy in non-seminomatous tumor of the testes]

Sixty four patients with non-seminomatous tumors of the testes were treated with chemotherapy with cisplatin during 12 consecutive years. A group of 22 (34.3%) patients in whom therapy failed was analysed. Nineteen of them (29.6%) died, and 3 (4.6%) live with the symptoms of disease. At the beginning of therapy 13 (59%) patients presented with III degree of clinical advancement of cancer. Complete remission after induction treatment was achieved in 6 (27.7%) patients but all experienced recurrence (4 early and 2 late). Prolonged survival since hemicastration in the group of patients with complete remission amounts to approximately 36.5 months whereas in the group of partial remission only 13.6 months. These results are similar to those reported by leading medical centres.