[Melanoma (Hutchinson's lentigo maligna) having spontaneous regression. A case of immunologic importance]

Abstract

I. A brief description is given of the general aspects of skin melanomas, including some personal observations. II. Immunologic facts are mentioned demonstrating: A) The existence of specific circulating antibodies demonstrated by immunofluorescence techniques, by the useful action of blood from patients with duly controlled melanoma injected into other melanoma patients, and by the verification that blood serum from a melanoma patient inhibits cultures thereof. B) As regards cell-mediated immunity, this is normal when a melanoma cure is obtained, and abnormal when no cure takes place. C) There exist melanoma remissions in patients treated with specific or non-specific (BCG) antigens. Spontaneous regression has also been observed in some melanomas. III. A case is presented: a) with spontaneous regression of facial malignant lentigo; b) manifestation of a cervical lymph node metastasis after the primitive tumor had subsided; c) low-degree cell-mediated immunity recuperated spontaneously in an exaggerated manner after radical neck dissection in which none of the lymph nodes proved metastatic; d) manifestation of herpes zoster while the patient presented her best immunologic index; and 2) 11 years' survival since the melanoma made its appearance, and more than 2 years (up to March 1979) since the manifestation of the lymph node metastases.