Palliative radiotherapy for Japanese patients with malignant melanoma: a single-institution experience

Purpose

This study aimed to clarify the significance of palliative radiotherapy for Japanese patients with malignant melanoma based on the experience of our institution.

Materials and methods

Twenty-nine patients with malignant melanoma who underwent palliative radiotherapy at our facility were included in the investigation. Median radiation dose was 30 Gy (4–30).

Results

Median follow-up time was 4.2 months (range 2.7–40.5 months). Twenty-two patient (75.9 %) died during the follow-up. The response rate of overall symptoms to radiotherapy was 63.0 %. The rate of completely resolved hemorrhage was relatively high (81.8 %). The median time of freedom from progression in completely resolved symptoms was 3.1 months (range 0.2–27.8 months). Radiation dose <30 Gy and poor performance status tended to be associated with poor symptomatic relief in treatment site (p = .080 and p = .068, respectively). There were very few severe toxic events.

Conclusion

Two thirds of symptoms were safely alleviated by palliative radiotherapy for Japanese patients with malignant melanoma. The therapeutic effect was retained for a substantial duration. Further domestic studies are warranted.