Thermochemotherapy with cisplatin or carboplatin in the BT4 rat glioma in vitro and in vivo.

The effect of thermochemotherapy with cisplatin or carboplatin was compared in the BT4-cell line. In vitro: BT4C-cells were treated with different concentrations of cisplatin or carboplatin, with or without simultaneous hyperthermia. In vivo: Inbred BD IX rats with transplanted glioma-like BT4A or glioblastoma-like BT4An tumors on the hind leg were treated with cisplatin (4 mg/kg) or carboplatin (50 mg/kg), with or without local hyperthermia. In vitro the benefit of adding hyperthermia to chemotherapy was similar for cisplatin and carboplatin. For both cisplatin and carboplatin, the difference of treatment effect between thermochemotherapy and chemotherapy alone increased with higher drug concentrations. In vivo hyperthermia clearly enhanced the effect of carboplatin on BT4A tumors. When treating BT4An tumors, thermochemotherapy with cisplatin or carboplatin was equally effective. Both combinations were superior to treatment with hyperthermia alone. Local toxicity and weight loss following thermochemotherapy were comparable when substituting cisplatin with carboplatin.