title: Metastatic melanoma: chemotherapy.
abstract: The incidence of cutaneous melanoma has been rapidly increasing, with an estimate of 47,700 new cases diagnosed in 2000 in the United States. In the early phase of its natural history, melanoma is cured in most cases by surgery, but once the metastatic phase develops, it is almost always fatal. The treatment of metastatic melanoma remains unsatisfactory. Systemic therapy has not been successful up to now, with very low response rates to single-agent chemotherapy. Polychemotherapy has increased the response rate (RR), without a significant improvement in overall survival. Immunotherapy alone is able to induce only a few durable complete responses (CRs). New chemotherapeutic and biologic agents are now available and promising combined approaches targeting the tumor by several different mechanisms are desirable and will probably represent the future modality of treatment.
authors.affiliation: Medical Oncology Unit B, Istituto Nazionale per lo Studio e la Cura dei Tumori, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Emilio
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Bajetta
authors.forename: Michele
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Del Vecchio
authors.forename: Chantal
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bernard-Marty
authors.forename: Milena
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Vitali
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Buzzoni
authors.forename: Olivier
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Rixe
authors.forename: Paola
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Nova
authors.forename: Stefania
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Aglione
authors.forename: Sophie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Taillibert
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Khayat
mesh_terms: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001952:Bridged-Ring Compounds / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016190:Carboplatin / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002945:Cisplatin / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D016207:Cytokines / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003606:Dacarbazine / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015316:Genetic Therapy / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D007167:Immunotherapy / Q000379:methods; D016898:Interferon-alpha / Q000627:therapeutic use; D007376:Interleukin-2 / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008545:Melanoma / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000556:secondary*; D009607:Nitrosourea Compounds / Q000627:therapeutic use; D009943:Organophosphorus Compounds / Q000627:therapeutic use; D017239:Paclitaxel / Q000627:therapeutic use; D013629:Tamoxifen / Q000627:therapeutic use; D043823:Taxoids; D013792:Thalidomide / Q000627:therapeutic use
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D001952:Bridged-Ring Compounds; D016207:Cytokines; D016898:Interferon-alpha; D007376:Interleukin-2; D009607:Nitrosourea Compounds; D009943:Organophosphorus Compounds; D043823:Taxoids; D013629:Tamoxifen; C080625:taxane; D013792:Thalidomide; D003606:Dacarbazine; D016190:Carboplatin; C054368:fotemustine; D017239:Paclitaxel; D002945:Cisplatin