1 Department of Dermatology, Kocaeli University School of Medicine, Turkey.
2 Department of Public Health, Kocaeli University School of Medicine, Turkey.
J Cutan Med Surg. 2019 Sep/Oct;23(5):488-495. doi: 10.1177/1203475419847954. Epub 2019 May 9.
Classic Kaposi sarcoma usually remains on the skin and has a slow progression; thus, local treatment methods are preferable. Imiquimod is an immunomodulatory agent with antiviral, antitumoural, and antiangiogenic properties that is expedient against Kaposi sarcoma.
We aimed to clarify whether imiquimod is effective on classic Kaposi sarcoma lesions by comparing imiquimod treatment with cryotherapy, which is the most-used treatment method in our department for this disease.
Patients with classic Kaposi sarcoma were included. All lesions of each patient were evaluated and measured by the blinded investigator considering infiltration and surface diameters. Then, lesions were categorized into 2 groups by the other investigator (nonblinded), and imiquimod 5% cream was administered 3 times per week without occlusion in 1 group. Cryotherapy was performed every 3 weeks in the other group. All lesions were reevaluated and measured at the end of 12 weeks by the blinded investigator. Initial and last measurements were compared between the treatment methods.
Fifty lesions of 8 patients were included in this study. Imiquimod and cryotherapy were applied to 26 and 24 lesions, respectively. At the end of the study, statistically significant decreases were detected in all scores between weeks 0 and 12 with both treatment methods. Mean percentages of change in scores were not significantly different between the methods.
Based on a limited number of patients and lesions treated, we believe imiquimod may be a suitable option to use for the treatment of classic Kaposi sarcoma.
经典型卡波西肉瘤通常局限于皮肤，进展缓慢；因此，局部治疗方法较为适用。咪喹莫特是一种具有抗病毒、抗肿瘤和抗血管生成特性的免疫调节剂，对卡波西肉瘤具有疗效。
我们旨在通过比较咪喹莫特治疗与冷冻疗法（我科治疗该病最常用的方法），明确咪喹莫特治疗经典型卡波西肉瘤皮损是否有效。
纳入经典型卡波西肉瘤患者。由盲法研究者根据浸润和表面直径评估和测量每位患者的所有皮损。然后，由另一位研究者（非盲法）将皮损分为两组，一组每周 3 次外用 5%咪喹莫特乳膏，不进行封包治疗，另一组每 3 周进行冷冻治疗。在 12 周结束时，盲法研究者再次评估和测量所有皮损。比较两种治疗方法的初始和末次测量值。
本研究纳入 8 例患者的 50 处皮损。咪喹莫特和冷冻疗法分别应用于 26 处和 24 处皮损。研究结束时，两种治疗方法在第 0 周和第 12 周时所有评分均有统计学意义的下降。两种方法评分变化的平均百分比无显著差异。
基于治疗的患者和皮损数量有限，我们认为咪喹莫特可能是治疗经典型卡波西肉瘤的一种合适选择。
