Long-term complete remission of melanoma liver metastases after intermittent intra-arterial cisplatin chemotherapy and surgery.

ABSTRACT

This paper presents the case of a female patient with liver metastases of a malignant melanoma showing complete remission after 10 courses of regional, intra-arterial chemotherapy with cisplatin. The drug was administered as continuous infusion for 5 days. The daily dosage amounted to 30 mg/m2. The interval between courses was 6 weeks. Nausea and vomiting were seen after each course, while pathological serum creatinine levels only appeared after the eighth course. The only lesion in the liver still visible on CT scan after chemotherapy was removed by left hemihepatectomy. Meticulous histological examination revealed a big focus of necrotic tissue without any tumour cells. At the time of publication the patient is alive and disease-free over 9 years later.