You are seeing this message because your Web browser does not support basic Web standards. Find out more about why this message is appearing and what you can do to make your experience on this site better.


ABOUT ARCHIVES
Advanced Search

Welcome   | My Account | E-mail Alerts | Access Rights | Sign In


  Vol. 122 No. 10, October 1987 TABLE OF CONTENTS
  Archives
  •  Online Features
  ARTICLE
 This Article
 •Send to a friend
 • Save in My Folder
 •Save to citation manager
 •Permissions
 Citing Articles
 •Citation map
 •Citing articles on HighWire
 •Contact me when this article is cited
 Related Content
 •Similar articles in this journal

Thin malignant melanomas and recurrence potential

H. M. Shaw, W. H. McCarthy, S. W. McCarthy and G. W. Milton
Sydney Melanoma Unit, Department of Surgery, University of Sydney, Camperdown, Australia.

Of 846 patients with stage I malignant melanoma that was less than 0.76-mm thick who were followed up for two to 31 years, 61 (7.2%) developed a recurrence. For those patients who did not initially undergo an elective lymph node dissection, the majority of first recurrences were at regional lymph nodes. Attempts have been made to identify those patients at risk of relapsing. Axial lesions, particularly those on the scalp, had the highest recurrence rate, with 15% of all thin scalp lesions recurring compared with only 4% of all thin extremity lesions. Three histological features proved to be useful prognostic indicators when analyzed by single-factor analysis. Evidence of ulceration in the primary lesion increased the recurrence rate from 6.7% to 26.1%. While only 4.3% of lesions displaying low mitotic activity recurred, this rate rose to 23.8% for those lesions of a high mitotic grade. Only 5% of Clark's level II lesions recurred, compared with about 12% of lesions at either level III or IV. Evidence of regression in thin lesions had no deleterious effect on prognosis. This study defines a small subset of patients who may benefit from elective lymph node dissection.

THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES

Malignant Melanoma in Turkey: A Single Institution's Experience on 475 Cases
Tas et al.
Jpn J Clin Oncol 2006;36:794-799.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Indications for Lymphatic Mapping and Sentinel Lymphadenectomy in Patients with Thin Melanoma (Breslow Thickness <=1.0 mm)
Stitzenberg et al.
Ann. Surg. Oncol. 2004;11:900-906.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Role of Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy in Patients With Thin (<1 mm) Primary Melanoma
Jacobs et al.
Ann. Surg. Oncol. 2003;10:558-561.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy in Patients With Thin Melanoma
Lowe et al.
Arch Dermatol 2003;139:617-621.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Current Status of Sentinel Lymph Node Mapping and Biopsy: Facts and Controversies
Jakub et al.
The Oncologist 2003;8:59-68.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Prognostic Factors Analysis of 17,600 Melanoma Patients: Validation of the American Joint Committee on Cancer Melanoma Staging System
Balch et al.
JCO 2001;19:3622-3634.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  





HOME | CURRENT ISSUE | PAST ISSUES | TOPIC COLLECTIONS | CME | SUBMIT | SUBSCRIBE | HELP
CONDITIONS OF USE | PRIVACY POLICY | CONTACT US | SITE MAP
 
© 1987 American Medical Association. All Rights Reserved.