Comparison of oral and transdermal administration of rasagiline mesylate on human melanoma tumor growth in vivo.

Background/aims: Transdermal patch administration results in a locally high concentration of drug that induce local toxicity, including tumorogenicity. As a worst-case scenario for consequences of repeated application on neoplastic growth, the melanin-binding drug, rasagiline, was used in a transdermal formulation applied directly to a human-derived melanoma to determine the effects on tumor growth.

Materials And Methods: Rasagiline mesylate was administered either orally or transdermally to athymic mice implanted with human melanoma (SKMEL28) to determine the effects on tumor growth and survival.