Study to Assess Safety and Immune Response of Stage IIB-IV Resected Melanoma After Treatment With MAGE-A3 ASCI

This was an open-label randomized single institution pilot study to evaluate the safety and immunologic response to MAGE-A3 immunotherapeutic administered by either of two injection routes (i.m. or i.d./s.c.). Patients were studied following IRB approval (IRB #15398) and documentation of informed consent. The trial was registered in clinicaltrials.gov (NCT01425749), and was performed at the University of Virginia. MAGE-A3 immunotherapeutic (0.5 ml) was administered five times (weeks 0, 3, 6, 9, 12) in extremities uninvolved with melanoma. Vaccines 1 and 3 were administered at the same site: other vaccine sites were rotated among available extremities. Subjects were randomized 1:1, within each stratum (AJCC stage II/III or IV), to i.m. (Group A) or i.d./s.c. (Group B) administration. The randomization code was generated by the study statistician using varying block sizes of 2 to 4. For group B patients, half of the dose was injected s.c., then the needle was withdrawn to the dermis, then advanced intradermally from that same puncture site and the remaining half dose was injected i.d. Immune responses were evaluated in a SIN and PBMC.