Cartilage Resection in the Surgical Management of Ear Melanoma.

Abstract Background: Melanoma of the ear accounts for approximately 1% of cutaneous melanomas. Management recommendations are based on small retrospective series and case reports. Resection of melanoma of the ear requires a delicate balance between disease clearance, preservation of function, and aesthetics. The role of cartilage resection in the wide excision of melanoma of the ear remains unclear. We aimed to compare outcomes in patients having wide excision of ear melanoma who had cartilage resected with those who had a cartilage-sparing approach. Methods: Data were obtained from the Melanoma Institute Australia (MIA) prospectively maintained database. All patients diagnosed with invasive melanoma [...]

April 28th, 2025|Comments Off on Cartilage Resection in the Surgical Management of Ear Melanoma.

Longitudinal Analysis Reveals Dynamic Changes in Histopathologic Features in Responders to Neoadjuvant Treatment in a Stage III BRAF-Mutant Melanoma Cohort.

Abstract Despite advances in systemic therapies, cutaneous melanoma remains a highly deadly disease. Patients with high-risk stage III melanoma have a significant likelihood of recurrence following surgery. Although adjuvant immunotherapy has been the standard of care, recent evidence demonstrates that neoadjuvant immunotherapy is more effective for higher-risk stage III patients, showing superior survival outcomes compared with adjuvant immunotherapy. This has led to an immediate paradigm shift in clinical practice toward neoadjuvant therapy for this cohort. The NeoTrio clinical trial assessed the efficacy of sequential or combination BRAF-targeted therapy with anti-programmed cell death-1 in the neoadjuvant setting. However, research on [...]

April 14th, 2025|Tags: , , , , , |Comments Off on Longitudinal Analysis Reveals Dynamic Changes in Histopathologic Features in Responders to Neoadjuvant Treatment in a Stage III BRAF-Mutant Melanoma Cohort.

Global Applicability of a Risk Prediction Tool for Sentinel Node Positivity in Patients With Primary Cutaneous Melanoma.

Abstract Importance: The Melanoma Institute Australia (MIA) sentinel node (SN) metastasis risk calculator provides estimates of positivity for individual patients based on 6 standard clinicopathological parameters and the full 6-parameter model has been externally validated previously using US data. However, given its geographically widespread use, further validation is required to ensure its applicability to other populations. Objective: To further externally validate the MIA SN metastasis risk calculator and increase its precision by refinement of the 95% CIs. Design, setting, and participants: A retrospective multicenter cohort study was carried out using data from 4 continents, including the national Danish Melanoma Database and cancer [...]

April 9th, 2025|Comments Off on Global Applicability of a Risk Prediction Tool for Sentinel Node Positivity in Patients With Primary Cutaneous Melanoma.

Clinical outcomes and management following progressive disease with anti-PD-(L)1 therapy in patients with advanced Merkel Cell Carcinoma.

Abstract Aim: Merkel Cell Carcinoma (MCC) is a rare skin cancer with a rising incidence worldwide. Anti-programmed death-1/ligand-1 (anti-PD-(L)1) therapies are effective for the treatment of advanced MCC. This study examines patterns of response / progression of advanced MCC to anti-PD-(L)1 therapies and describes subsequent management. Method: This is a multi-centre international retrospective cohort study with data collected up to May 2023 from 17 centres across 6 countries. Outcomes included objective response rate (ORR), duration of response (DOR), progression-free survival (PFS), and overall survival (OS) for anti-PD-(L)1 and subsequent therapy. Results: One-hundred and eighty-five advanced MCC patients received anti-PD-(L)1 therapy. At median [...]

February 25th, 2025|Tags: , , , , , |Comments Off on Clinical outcomes and management following progressive disease with anti-PD-(L)1 therapy in patients with advanced Merkel Cell Carcinoma.

Mohs micrographic surgery for the treatment of invasive melanoma: A systematic review with meta-analyses.

Abstract Background: The use of Mohs micrographic surgery (MMS) in melanoma treatment has divided opinion and evidence-based guidelines are lacking. Objectives: This systematic review aimed to analyse clinical outcomes for patients with invasive melanomas treated with Mohs rather than wide local excision (WLE). Methods: Embase, MEDLINE and Cochrane databases (to 30 August 2023) were searched for studies using Mohs to treat invasive melanoma. Outcomes of interest were local recurrence and death from melanoma. Results: Thirty-five articles involving 41,499 patients with invasive melanoma treated with Mohs were identified. Sixteen studies compared Mohs with WLE and 19 were Mohs-only, non-comparative studies. Patients treated with Mohs [...]

February 1st, 2025|Comments Off on Mohs micrographic surgery for the treatment of invasive melanoma: A systematic review with meta-analyses.

Risk of Death Due to Melanoma and Other Causes in Patients With Thin Cutaneous Melanomas.

Abstract Importance: Most patients who present with primary cutaneous melanomas have thin tumors (≤1.0 mm in Breslow thickness, ie, pT1a and pT1b). Although their prognosis is generally considered to be excellent, there is limited precise information on the association of risk of death with specific Breslow measurements in thin lesions. Objective: To assess the relative effect of a 0.8-mm Breslow thickness threshold with respect to the incidence of both melanoma-related and nonmelanoma-related death. Design, setting, and participants: Registry data for all Australians diagnosed with thin invasive primary melanomas between 1982 and 2014 were analyzed. Data were extracted from all 8 Australian state [...]

December 11th, 2024|Comments Off on Risk of Death Due to Melanoma and Other Causes in Patients With Thin Cutaneous Melanomas.

Clinical significance of intra-thoracic and intra-abdominal sentinel lymph nodes detected on lymphoscintigraphy in truncal melanoma patients.

Abstract Background: Although most melanomas drain to the more common major lymph node basins (axilla, groin, neck), rarely they drain to deep SLN locations such as intra-abdominal and intra-thoracic (including intercostal and internal mammary) sites, which pose a higher surgical risk and complexity for procurement. Our study is aimed at determining the rate of positivity and likelihood of recurrence in these nodal sites to guide management decisions for patients with truncal melanomas which drain to these 'deep' SLN locations. Methods: Retrospective data collected between May 2008 and May 2022 including all patients with truncal melanomas who underwent lymphoscintigraphy resulting in the [...]

December 9th, 2024|Comments Off on Clinical significance of intra-thoracic and intra-abdominal sentinel lymph nodes detected on lymphoscintigraphy in truncal melanoma patients.

The Impact of Preoperative Facial Nerve Weakness and Facial Nerve Outcomes in the Management of Patients With Parotid Metastases of Cutaneous Squamous Cell Carcinoma.

Abstract Background: Cutaneous squamous cell carcinomas (cSCC) metastasizing to the parotid gland can cause facial nerve (FN) dysfunction secondary to direct invasion, perineural spread, or surgical ablation. This study aims to characterize the prevalence of preoperative FN involvement in metastatic cSCC to the parotid and identify risk factors resulting in FN sacrifice. Methods: Patients with parotid metastases from cSCC, treated surgically with parotidectomy with curative intent were identified through a retrospective cohort analysis of a prospectively maintained Sydney Head and Neck database from 1992 to 2021. Results: Of 408 patients identified, 39 (10%) were found to have preoperative FN weakness, of which [...]

November 25th, 2024|Tags: , , , , |Comments Off on The Impact of Preoperative Facial Nerve Weakness and Facial Nerve Outcomes in the Management of Patients With Parotid Metastases of Cutaneous Squamous Cell Carcinoma.
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