Assessment of 35 Years Longitudinal Observations on Melanoma Patients in a Single Center of Hungary’s Central Region: Effect of Interferon Immunotherapy

Abstract

Background: The incidence of melanoma malignum increases worldwide. Detailed objective analyses from central European region are scarcely available. Objective: To obtain validated data on melanoma distribution and retrospective analysis in the central region of Hungary based on 35 years of experience in a single center. Methods: The authors monitored the clinical course of their patients with melanoma between 1984 and 2018 based on the digitalized documentation of their institute. They analyzed the treated and non-treated cases with the leadership of a dermatologist-pathologist-oncologist. Altogether 867 cases (450 female, 417 male) were examined from the removal of the primary tumor onwards in retrospective way. Results: Distribution of gender, age, tumor stages and body regions by genders were examined. The authors also reviewed the asymptomatic period until tumor progression, morbidity data, the period and effect of the adjuvant low, intermediate and high dose interferon α-2b immunotherapy. Patients with lymph node metastasis who received low or intermediate dose immunotherapy experienced significantly longer tumor-free period than those who got high-dose immunotherapy. In both treated groups, the median value of the asymptomatic months was higher compared to the observation only” group. Conclusion: The results of their long-term follow-up contribute to the accurate evaluation of melanoma and of the interferon therapy in Hungary and in the region.