Effectiveness of psoralens in mycosis fungoides.

A 6-year follow-up of 12 patients with mycosis fungoides (MF) treated with psoralen photochemotherapy (PUVA) at the Cleveland Clinic revealed that 7 patients are clear of MF with 4 no longer receiving therapy and 3 on maintenance PUVA. Five patients died within 2 years of onset of therapy. Of 25 others with MF who were treated at Northwestern University, 20 are clear or partially clear after PUVA. Plaque-stage MF responds best to this type of treatment; Sézary syndrome, erythrodermic MF, and tumor-stage MF respond poorly to PUVA.