Melanoma Outcomes in Transplant Recipients With Pretransplant Melanoma.

Background: There are limited data on outcomes in transplant recipients with a history of pretransplant melanoma.

Objective: To determine whether pretransplant melanoma is associated with differences in survival or posttransplant melanoma risk.

Materials And Methods: We evaluated the outcomes of 185,039 US transplant recipients from the Transplant Cancer Match Study.

Patterns of recurrence following complete response to regional chemotherapy for in-transit melanoma.

Background: Even after complete response (CR) to regional chemotherapy for in-transit melanoma, many patients develop recurrence. Understanding the probability, location, and timing of recurrences can optimize management strategies for this patient population.

Methods: A prospective database identified patients who underwent 81 first-time hyperthermic isolated limb perfusions (HILPs) and 133 first-time isolated limb infusions (ILIs).

Current trends in regional therapy for melanoma: lessons learned from 225 regional chemotherapy treatments between 1995 and 2010 at a single institution.

Background: Hyperthermic isolated limb perfusion (HILP) and isolated limb infusion (ILI) are used to manage advanced extremity melanoma, but no consensus exists as to which treatment is preferable and how to monitor patients post-treatment.

Study Design: Using a prospectively maintained database, we reviewed our experience with melphalan-based HILP (which included 62 first-time and 10 second-time) and ILI (which included 126 first-time and 18 second-time) procedures performed in 188 patients. PET/CT was obtained 3 months postregional treatment for 1 year and then every 6 months thereafter.

A two-hybrid assay to study protein interactions within the secretory pathway.

Interactions of transcriptional activators are difficult to study using transcription-based two-hybrid assays due to potent activation resulting in false positives. Here we report the development of the Golgi two-hybrid (G2H), a method that interrogates protein interactions within the Golgi, where transcriptional activators can be assayed with negligible background. The G2H relies on cell surface glycosylation to report extracellularly on protein-protein interactions occurring within the secretory pathway.

Regional treatment strategies for in-transit melanoma metastasis.

For in-transit melanoma confined to the extremities, regional chemotherapy in the form of hyperthermic isolated limb perfusion and isolated limb infusion are effective treatment modalities carrying superior response rates to current standard systemic therapy. Despite high response rates, most patients will eventually recur, supporting the role for novel research aimed at improving durable responses and minimizing toxicity. Although the standard cytotoxic agent for regional chemotherapy is melphalan, alternative agents such as temozolomide are currently being tested, with promising preliminary results.