RESUMO
The study evaluated the contribution of serum PS100 assay to the detection of lymph node metastases during the follow-up of patients previously treated for a malignant melanoma, in addition to (99m)Tc sestamibi (MIBI) scintigraphy and investigation for gene MDR1, in order to detect chemoresistance phenomena. The study included 37 patients with a clinically questionable lymph node around basin lymphatic areas of the previously surgically-treated malignant melanoma. The sensitivity and specificity of PS100 assay were 91% and 86.5%, respectively. The sensitivity and specificity of MIBI scintigraphy were 95% and 85%, respectively. Overexpression of gene MDR1 was observed in six cases. In the event of negative scintigraphic findings, the concomitant analysis of PS100 levels and the scintigraphic result enabled the metastatic MDR+ patients to be distinguished from the non-metastatic patients. PS100 assay may therefore be proposed for the follow-up of malignant melanoma.
