Failure of DMSO and vitamin E to prevent doxorubicin skin ulceration in the mouse.

Doxorubicin (DOX)-induced skin ulceration in rats and pigs has been reported to be reduced when treated with topical DMSO and/or vitamin E. In the present study using a mouse model, neither intradermal nor topical DMSO with or without vitamin E, administered up to 7 days, reduced intradermal DOX-induced skin ulceration. Intradermal DMSO with or without vitamin E caused skin ulceration and significantly increased DOX-induced ulcerations. Topical DMSO-containing solutions were not toxic to mouse skin. To test for a systemic effect of topical DMSO, two groups of mice received an additional 0.05-mg intradermal injection of DOX above a DMSO-treated lesion. There was no apparent effect of topical DMSO with or without vitamin E on this proximal but untreated DOX lesion. The results suggest either a major difference in DOX ulceration characteristics between rats and pigs on the one hand and mice on the other hand or a lack of significant efficacy for DMSO and vitamin E as DOX extravasation antidotes.