Peplomycin therapy for skin cancer in Japan.

Peplomycin was given in a dose of 5 mg daily, divided into two equal parts for intramuscular administration each morning and evening. This schedule not only augments the antitumour effect but also reduces adverse reactions to the drug. Peplomycin-mitomycin C (P-M) therapy improves the response rates in T3 and T4 cases of skin cancer, and is also effective in some N1, N3 and M1 cases. Continuous intra-arterial infusion of peplomycin, though requiring somewhat complicated procedures, is very effective against squamous cell carcinoma of the head, neck and extremities. Multidisciplinary therapy incorporating peplomycin has given a considerably higher five-year survival rate than that found in historical controls.