Ipilimumab, in combination with
nivolumab, is one of the promising drugs that enhance the anti-
tumor immune response of patients with advanced
melanoma. Since the co-administration of
nivolumab with
ipilimumab in the neoadjuvant setting expands
melanoma-reactive T cells at the primary site of
melanoma and has a high rate of histological complete response, the pre-surgical administration of this combination could be the optimal
therapy for unresectable advanced
melanoma. In this report, a case of unresectable advanced
melanoma treated successfully with administration of
nivolumab with
ipilimumab before primary
tumor resection is presented. In addition, CD8+ T cells increased among the tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes that were surrounding
melanoma cells and
caspase 3+ cells. The present case suggests that pre-surgical administration of
nivolumab with
ipilimumab could be the optimal
therapy for the treatment of unresectable advanced
melanoma.