Synchronous cisplatin infusion during radiotherapy for the treatment of metastatic melanoma

In two pilot studies, 55 patients with symptomatic metastases from malignant melanoma were treated with irradiation and concurrent cisplatin. In the first group, cisplatin was given as a continuous intravenous infusion of 20 mg/m² per day on days 1–5 and 22–26, with irradiation on days 2, 5, 9, 16, 23 and 26. The second group received 20 mg cisplatin over 24 h commencing 1 h before each fraction of irradiation on days 1, 4, 8, 11, 15 and 18. The first series of 28 patients had 30 lesions treated. Nine (30%) of these lesions responded completely and 10 (33%) achieved partial response for an overall response rate of 63% (95% confidence interval 44–80%). Survival was not evaluated in this group. The second group was comprised of 27 patients, with one irradiated lesion each. 1 patient achieved a complete response and 13 (48%) a partial response for an overall response rate of 52% (32–71%). Median survival was 21 weeks (16–31 weeks). Treatment was well tolerated with nausea and vomiting being the most common toxicity. Synchronous cisplatin infusion with radiotherapy achieves high response rates in metastatic melanoma. Whether it is superior to radiotherapy alone will require evaluation in a randomised trial.