Ex vivo cytokine gene transfer in melanomas by using particle bombardment.

Melanoma is a malignant tumor of neuroectodermal origin with an increasing incidence and mortality. It needs to be detected and eliminated early, because melanoma is characterized by its high resistance to the conventional therapies, including surgery and chemotherapy (1-3). On the other hand, melanoma is supposed to be one of the most immunogenic tumors which is demonstrated by tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL) destroying melanoma cells (4-6). This may also be responsible for the occurrence of spontaneous partial or complete melanoma regression and for concomitant destruction of melanocytes in benign lesions, leading to clinical phenomena such as halo nevi, uveitis, and vitiligo in melanoma patients.