ANTI-TYROSINASE ANTIBODIES IN MALIGNANT-MELANOMA

Anti-tyrosinase antibodies were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorben t assay in sera of patients with malignant melanoma with either metast atic disease or no evidence of disease, in patients with melanoma and associated hypopigmentation (MAH), in patients with vitiligo and in he althy volunteers. The mean relative absorbance (A(rel)) was calculated by dividing the absorbance of each sample by the mean value for the c ontrol group. Using this method, the A (rel) of the control group was 1.000(SE 0.083). A(rel) of patients with metastatic disease (1.516; SE 0.225) was significantly higher (P = 0.03) than the value for the con trols, but insignificantly higher than that for patients with no evide nce of disease (1.216; SE 0.148). Patients with no evidence of disease , in whom the primary lesion originated in the lower limb, had a signi ficantly higher (P = 0.01) A(rel) than the healthy volunteers. Patient s with metastatic disease showed higher A(rel) if their primary lesion s were confined to the area of the head and neck or to the lower limb. Patients with vitiligo had higher A(rel) values for their anti-tyrosi nase antibody than any of the other groups. However, those with melano ma and MAH (vitiligo-like) had the same A(rel) of anti-tyrosinase anti bodies as the controls or the patients with metastatic melanoma. This observation reflected the possible absorption of anti-tyrosinase antib odies to melanoma antigens, and pointed to the participation of anti-t yrosinase antibodies in the destruction of normal melanocytes in patie nts with melanoma, as part of the immune reaction towards this disease .