A melanoma peptide vaccine with potential antineoplastic activity. Peptide 946 melanoma vaccine contains one of the peptide sequences for a melanoma-specific epitope that is recognized by melanoma-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL). This vaccine contains a peptide sequence homologous to the native epitope and is often formulated with an adjuvant such as QS-21 or Montanide ISA-51 to boost its immune stimulation. Vaccination with peptide 946 vaccine may produce antibodies as well as elicit a cytotoxic T- lymphocyte (CTL) response against cells expressing this antigen, resulting in decreased tumor cell growth.