Vemurafenib in leptomeningeal carcinomatosis from melanoma: a case report of near-complete response and prolonged survival

Targeted therapies such as the BRAF inhibitors vemurafenib and dabrafenib are highly effective in the treatment of systemic metastatic melanoma and have been shown to be effective in controlling solid brain metastases; however, limited data exist on their activity in leptomeningeal spread. Here, we present a case of a 60-year-old woman who developed leptomeningeal carcinomatosis from melanoma after resection and stereotactic radiotherapy of melanoma brain metastases, with poor performance status, who received vemurafenib as first-line treatment, resulting in significant clinical and imaging response as well as prolonged survival.