Malignant Melanoma

Did You Know?

• Excessive sun exposure can result in painful sunburn, but can also lead to other serious health problems, including melanoma, a life-threatening form of skin cancer.
• Melanoma is one of {the} fastest-growing forms of cancer.
• Children are at greatest risk, since serious sunburns during {the} originally 18 years of life is believed to increase {the} risk of cancer by more than 50%.
• For those with sun-sensitive skin, fair complexions, light hair, or for those who spend excessive amounts of time in {the} sun
• in 1983, Drs. Kopf, Friedman and Rigel developed {the} A, B, C, D technique for diagnosing melanoma
  • surface characteristics that can be seen by all, patients and doctors alike.
    • A .... asymmetry,
    • B .....border irregularity,
    • C .....color variation
    • D.....diameter over 6mm (1/4 of an inch).

  Asymmetry	not regularly round or regularly oval
  Border	notched, scalloped or poorly defined at {the} edges
  Color variation	shades of brown, tan, red, white, blue or black alone or in any combination
  Diameter	6mm ({the} size of a pencil eraser)

• What is it?

  • Malignant melanoma represents approximately 5% of all skin cancers. Never {the} less, ALMOST 2/3 OF ALL DEATHS FROM SKIN CANCER ARE DUE TO MALIGNANT MELANOMA!
  • Most cutaneous (skin) melanomas seem to develop without a history of a nevus.
  
  

  The four forms of cutaneous melanoma are

  
  1) lentigo maligna melanoma
  2) superficial spreading melanoma
  3) nodular melanoma
  4) acral lentiginous melanoma.

• Who gets them?

  • Primary malignant melanomas of {the} eyelid are extremely rare; they amount to 1% of all eyelid cancers.
  • It has been estimated that an American's current lifetime risk for developing a skin melanoma is 1 in 128.

• Where do they Occur?

  • Lentigo maligna (Hutchinson's melanotic freckle) is considered {the} premalignant lesion of lentigo maligna melanoma. It a represents 10% of all skin melanomas is {the} most common form in {the} head and neck areas.
  • They are usually flat, tan to brown macule with irregular borders.
  • Within {the} lesion, there may possibly also be areas of white and grey. They most offen occur on sun-exposed facial skin in {the} elderly.
• Superficial spreading melanoma is considered {the} more common form of melanoma. It represents 70% of skin melanomas. It usuallly involves nonexposed skin surfaces. It may possibly appear on {the} nonexposed skin surfaces and a grow faster than lentigo maligna.

• Are they dangerous?

• Treatment

  • A patient with a suspected eyelid melanoma should have a careful examination, an incisional biopsy, and may possibly ultimately require complete excision of {the} lesion and follow-up with an oncologist since this tumor can spread throughout {the} body.
  • Excision of {the} tumor can be performed by a MOHS surgeon, an dermatologist, or an ophthalmic plastic surgeon.