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Melanoma Epidemiology Revisited and Future Challenges

Arch Dermatol. 2006;142:1638-1640.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

In this issue of the ARCHIVES, Liu et al¹ make a significant contribution to the understanding of differential growth rates of melanomas. Using the Breslow index as a surrogate for tumor growth, they find that approximately one third of melanomas are rapidly growing melanomas. These fast-growing tumors are usually thick, occur mainly in elderly patients, and from a clinical point of view are symmetrical.

The notion that tumor growth is not the same in each melanoma subtype is intuitive and empirical. The classic distinction of melanomas into superficial spreading, acrolentiginous, lentigo maligna, and nodular subtypes is subject to debate.² These classic histogenetic types are not an independent prognostic factor, and many melanomas do not fit into these categories.^3-4

The genesis and progression of melanoma have been compared with an eclipse⁵ in which successive biological phenomena occur, including the loss of cell cycle regulation, capacity of intraepidermal tumor spread, . . . [Full Text of this Article]

HOW FREQUENT ARE FAST-GROWING MELANOMAS, AND HOW CAN WE RECOGNIZE THEM?


HOW DO THEIR FINDINGS FIT INTO OUR UNDERSTANDING OF MELANOMA EPIDEMIOLOGY?

WHAT IS THE IMPACT OF THE EXISTENCE OF FAST-GROWING MELANOMAS ON DETECTION AND PREVENTION?

AUTHOR INFORMATION
Dan Lipsker, MD, PhD

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Fast-Growing and Slow-Growing Melanomas
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Arch Dermatol. 2007;143(6):802-803.
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Fast-Growing and Slow-Growing Melanomas—Reply
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Arch Dermatol. 2007;143(6):803-804.
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Increasing Ratio of Thin to Thick Melanoma Lesions: Pathogenesis and Early Detection of This Cancer
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Increasing Ratio of Thin to Thick Melanoma Lesions: Pathogenesis and Early Detection of This Cancer—Reply
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Rate of Growth in Melanomas: Characteristics and Associations of Rapidly Growing Melanomas
Wendy Liu, John P. Dowling, William K. Murray, Grant A. McArthur, John F. Thompson, Rory Wolfe, and John W. Kelly
Arch Dermatol. 2006;142(12):1551-1558.
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THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES

Utility of Lesion Diameter in the Clinical Diagnosis of Cutaneous Melanoma
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Fast-Growing and Slow-Growing Melanomas
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Kelly et al.
Arch Dermatol 2007;143:803-804.
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Increasing Ratio of Thin to Thick Melanoma Lesions: Pathogenesis and Early Detection of This Cancer
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Arch Dermatol 2007;143:804-804.
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Increasing Ratio of Thin to Thick Melanoma Lesions: Pathogenesis and Early Detection of This Cancer--Reply
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Arch Dermatol 2007;143:804-805.
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