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DO ALL MELANOMAS COME FROM “MOLES”? A STUDY OF THE HISTOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION BETWEEN MELANOCYTIC NAEVI AND MELANOMA
Author(s) -
Marks Robin,
Dorevitch Abe P.,
Mason Graham
Publication year - 1990
Publication title -
australasian journal of dermatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.67
H-Index - 53
eISSN - 1440-0960
pISSN - 0004-8380
DOI - 10.1111/j.1440-0960.1990.tb00656.x
Subject(s) - medicine , melanoma , dermatology , nevus , superficial spreading melanoma , pathology , nodular melanoma , melanocytic nevus , cancer research
S ummary Histological examination of 1101 melanomas (990 superficial spreading and HI nodular melanomas) from 1098 people revealed that 23.3% showed an associated melanocytic naevus. Of these, 56.5% were classified histologically as common acquired, 37.7% as dysplastic and 5.8% as congenital. Of the superficial spreading melanomas, 25.7% showed an associated naevus. By contrast, only 2.7% of nodular melanomas showed histological evidence of a coexisting naevus. When the superficial spreading melanomas were analysed by level, the presence of a naevus varied from 31.3% of level I melanomas to 21.3% of level IV melanomas. When thickness was measured, an associated naevus was found in 27.0% of superficial spreading melanomas less than 1.0mm thick, and 14.8% of melanomas with a thickness of 1.0mm or greater. These data suggest that most melanomas do not arise in pre‐existing naevi, and accordingly public educational programs for the early detection of melanoma should focus on looking for changes in previously normal skin as well as in pre‐existing moles.