Treatment of malignant nondysgerminomatous germ cell tumors of the ovary with vinblastine, bleomycin, and cisplatin.

Fifteen patients with malignant nondysgerminomatous germ cell tumors of the ovary seen at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Hospital and Tumor Institute at Houston, were treated with a combination of vinblastine, bleomycin, and cisplatin (VBP). All patients underwent initial surgery: biopsy alone in one patient, unilateral salpingo-oophorectomy in ten patients, and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy with or without hysterectomy in four patients. Seven patients received VBP as primary postoperative therapy. One patient died of progressive disease at 15 months following diagnosis. The other six patients are alive without evidence of disease 9 to 47 months from the time of diagnosis. Eight patients received VBP as second-line treatment; three patients had a complete response to therapy and are surviving disease-free 41 to 71 months from the time of diagnosis. Four patients treated secondarily had a partial response; three of these patients subsequently developed progressive disease and died, while one patient survived after undergoing salvage therapy with an etoposide-containing regimen. One patient had no discernible response to VBP therapy and died. The VBP regimen represents an aggressive, moderately toxic, short-term combination regimen that has promising activity against malignant germ cell tumors of the ovary.