[Interferon and vinblastine in presumably operable metastases of renal carcinoma]

From January 1987 to December 1990, 14 consecutive patients with resectable metastases from renal cell carcinoma, underwent 3 cycles of preoperative alpha-2a Interferon (INF), 18 MUI s.c. 3 times a week, and Vinblastine (VLB), 0.15 mg/kg on day 1, every 21, days. Out of the 13 patients who completed the treatment, 4 (30.7%) achieved a clinical response (1 CR and 3 PR). Nine (69.3%) patients were submitted to surgery: all, including the CRer, had residual cancer and only 4 were radically resected. The latter were further submitted to 3 INF and VLB cycles: 2 relapsed after 7 and respectively 30 months, whilst 2 (15.4%) are alive disease-free at 12 and 52 months respectively.