title: Adjuvant chemotherapy with dacarbazine, vindesine, and cisplatin in pathological stage II malignant melanoma.
abstract: Following curative lymph node dissection, 28 patients with pathological Stage II malignant melanoma (metastatic to regional lymph nodes) received adjuvant chemotherapy with dacarbazine, vindesine, and cisplatin (DVP); 32 more patients with similar characteristics refused adjuvant treatment. In the treated group, 15 patients (53%) developed dissemination of disease after 4 to 29 months; 20 (62%) of the patients who refused adjuvant treatment recurred after 4 to 25 months and received palliative treatment with DVP. No significant differences in survival or disease-free survival according to different patient characteristics could be detected between these two groups with the available patient population. Large and well-designed prospective randomized trials are required to determine if the adjuvant use of this treatment schedule, which includes the three most active drugs improves survival in patients with nondisseminated melanoma.
authors.affiliation: 1st Department of Medical Oncology, Metaxas Cancer Hospital, Piraeus, Greece.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Pectasides
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Alevizakos
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Bafaloukos
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tzonou
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Asimakopoulos
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Varthalitis
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Dimitriadis
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Athanassiou
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D002945:Cisplatin / Q000008:administration & dosage; D003606:Dacarbazine / Q000008:administration & dosage; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015993:Life Tables; D008297:Male; D008545:Melanoma / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality / Q000556:secondary; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D016019:Survival Analysis; D014751:Vindesine / Q000008:administration & dosage
chemical_list: D003606:Dacarbazine; D002945:Cisplatin; D014751:Vindesine