B16 melanoma response in vivo to photochemotherapy with mitoxantrone and red light

The cytocidal activity of light-activated mitoxantrone in mice bearing B16 melanoma was investigated. Mice inoculated with 10(6) tumor cells on day 0 were i.p. injected with 1 mg/kg body weight of mitoxantrone on days 1, 5 and 9 and exposed to 108 J/cm2 of suitably filtered red light from a halogen lamp on days 2, 6 and 10. The treatment significantly prolonged the median survival time compared to both therapy with mitoxantrone and with red light alone.