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- Investigational Several new treatment methods have shown some promise in treating melanoma.
- • Highly specific antibodies engineered in the test tube (monoclonal antibodies) to act against surface
- components of melanoma cells are being evaluated. Antibodies by themselves have not been too effective, but
- when used as carriers for killer molecules—radioactive isotopes, strong chemotherapeutic drugs, enzymes or
- toxins—good effects have been achieved in animals. Trials in humans have already shown that antibodies have
- "homed" to the tumor and can show its location accurately on radioisotope scanning ( see Biological Therapy ).
- • There are 12 interleukins , several of which are now being tested on humans. Other combinations include
- interferons and interleukins together or in sequence.
- • High-dose chemotherapy , with single drugs or in combinations, followed by autologous bone marrow
- transfusion, has had too many dangerous side effects associated with the drugs in current trials and too short a
- duration of response. The general approach, however, is very promising. Even now the rate of response is in
- the order of 60 percent.
- • Several groups, including one at the National Cancer Institute , have begun investigating immunotherapy with
- tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL) or cloned killer and helper T cells. This form of "adoptive"
- immunotherapy involves removing blood cells from the patient, stimulating and multiplying them, then
- returning them, usually with IL-2 . Insertion of genes for cytokines, such as IL-2, TNF or GM-CSF, into
- irradiated tumor cells (for vaccines) or T cells (for adoptive immunotherapy) is being tried to make vaccines
- more effective or to increase the number and lifespan of the transferred T cells in the body. This "gene
-
