Adjuvant interferon treatment for melanoma

After decades of research, the adjuvant therapy of patients with melanoma has recently shown significant survival and relapse-free interval benefit for the intravenous and subcutaneous administration of maximally tolerable dosages of recombinant IFN alpha 2b in a trial conducted by the ECOG (E1684). Despite the toxicity of this therapy, retrospective analyses of its impact upon quality-of-life using Q-TWiST methods and cost-efficacy analyses all argue for the benefit and utility of this intervention, especially for node-positive patients with resectable melanoma at highest risk of relapse. A confirmatory trial has been completed and will mature in the spring of 1998. The impact of lower dosages of IFN, apparent transiently during and for a period of time following treatment has not been sustained with longer follow-up in a number of trials. Current approaches in Europe and North America focus upon refinement of dose and duration of treatment with IFN and their potential interactions with, and comparison with, active specific immunotherapy with vaccines. A recently emerging area of research is the patient with stage IIA melanoma and the potential role of an abbreviated high-dose regimen of IFN alpha in this patient subset.