Adjuvant, Combined Interleukin 2 (Proleukin) and DTIC (Dacarbazine) in High-risk Melanoma Patients

The prognosis of patients with malignant melanomas that are greater than 4 mm deep or involve regional lymph nodes is poor, even after successful surgical removal. The concept of adjuvant therapy for melanoma is derived from the hypothesis that these therapies may kill micro-metastatic seeds of melanoma cells. The rationale for this particular drug combination regimen is that melanoma cells may act as a vaccine from which to generate melanoma-specific T cell expansion by way of IL2 administration. In unpublished results, forty-two stage II and III melanoma patients were treated with this regimen at the University of Alabama with IRB approval. Analysis of relapse free survival and overall survival in patients treated with this combination suggested a small improvement in disease-free survival when compared to historical controls or another study whose patients had similar but not identical staging (median follow-up time of 30 months). Importantly, no unanticipated side effects were observed as a result of the combination of these two drugs (both of which are FDA-approved for use in melanoma patients).