What you need to know about melanoma from the National Cancer institute
Melanoma is the most serious type of cancer of the skin. Each year in the United States, more than 53,600 people learn they have melanoma. In some parts of the world, especially among Western countries, melanoma is becoming more common every year. In the United States, for example, the percentage of people who develop melanoma has more than doubled in the past 30 years. The National Cancer Institute (NCI) has written this booklet (NIH Publication No. 02-1563) to help people with melanoma and their families and friends better understand this disease. We hope others will read it as well to learn more about melanoma. This booklet discusses risks and prevention, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up care. It also has information about resources and sources of support to help patients cope with melanoma....more from the National Cancer Institute, U.S. National Institutes of Health.
Skin cancer (melanoma): Essentials from Consumer reports
What is it? What are the symptoms? How is it diagnosed? How common is it? What will happen? Questions to ask.
Key points about treatments at Consumer reports.
Information on Melanoma from Mayo Clinic
Information on melanoma from MayoClinic.com.
What you need to know about moles and dysplastic nevi.
The National Cancer Institute (NCI) has written this booklet (NIH Publication No. 99-3133) to help you learn more about common moles and unusual ones called dysplastic nevi or atypical moles. This booklet shows what moles look like and explains how they may be related to melanoma, a type of skin cancer. It describes the signs of melanoma and explains how you can check your skin for moles that might be cancerous. It also explains why and how you can protect your skin...more from the National Cancer Institute, U.S. National Institutes of Health.
Protect yourself in 5 ways from skin cancer.
Hats, Clothing, Shade, Sunglasses, and Sunscreen - A 5 step plan from the Australian Government Dept. of Health and Ageing.
Tutorial: The Early Diagnosis of Melanoma
Primary healthcare workers and specialists in training are the intended audience fro this tutorial, although experienced clinicians and patients may also find it useful. The tutorial contains text, photographs, videos, clinical cases and a self assessment section. See the tutorial at genomel.org.
Warning Signs: The ABCDEs of Melanoma.
Moles, brown spots and growths on the skin are usually harmless — but not always. Anyone who has more than 100 moles is at greater risk for melanoma. The first signs can appear in one or more atypical moles. That's why it's so important to get to know your skin very well and to recognize any changes in the moles on your body. Look for the ABCDEs of melanoma, and if you see one or more, make an appointment with a physician immediately.... more from the Skin Cancer Foundation.
Sun Protection.
Sun Protection Tips. Protective Clothing. Sunglasses. Sunscreen. The best way to protect your skin from the dangerous effects of UV radiation is to make sun protection part of your daily routine….more from the Food and Drug Administration.
Podcast: Melanoma therapy interview with Dr Ekaterina Dadachova
This podcast covers the treatment of experimental metastatic melanoma by a combination of chemotherapy and radiolabeled antibody to melanin with an interview with
Dr Ekaterina Dadachova from Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY
Using a very novel approach and an interesting course of research Dr Ekaterina Dadachova talks about the current state of her project. Listen at blogspot.com.
Podcast: Focus on Melanoma
A full day symposium designed to address the personal and medical issues facing those at risk for melanoma, survivors of melanoma, their loved ones, and caregivers. This year's conference was intended to help those at risk and survivors of melanoma become active participants in their care through both the treatment and the emotional journey. Listen at the University of Pennsylvania Abramson Cancer Center website.
Video: Surgery for Melanoma
This interview covering melanoma focuses on the latest surgical approaches for treating this disease. Watch the video presented by the University of Maryland Medical Center.
Abstract: Malignant melanoma in the 21st century, part 1: epidemiology, risk factors, screening, prevention, and diagnosis.
Malignant melanoma is an aggressive, therapy-resistant malignancy of melanocytes. The incidence of melanoma has been steadily increasing worldwide, resulting in an increasing public health problem. Exposure to solar UV radiation, fair skin, dysplastic nevi syndrome, and a family history of melanoma are major risk factors for melanoma development. Full text available free through PubMed.
Abstract: Malignant melanoma in the 21st century, part 2: staging, prognosis, and treatment.
Critical to the clinical management of a patient with malignant melanoma is an understanding of its natural history. As with most malignant disorders, prognosis is highly dependent on the clinical stage (extent of tumor burden) at the time of diagnosis. The patient's clinical stage at diagnosis dictates selection of therapy. We review the state of the art in melanoma staging, prognosis, and therapy. Substantial progress has been made in this regard during the past 2 decades. Full text available free through PubMed.
Abstract: Ultraviolet radiation: sun exposure, tanning beds, and vitamin D levels. What you need to know and how to decrease the risk of skin cancer.
This year, more than one million new cases of skin cancer will be diagnosed in the United States and an estimated 9800 individuals will die of the disease. Despite recent public education efforts and increased public awareness about the importance of the use of sunscreen and avoidance of ultraviolet radiation, the incidence of melanoma has more than tripled among white Americans from 1980 to 2001. This increase in cancer rates means that one person dies of melanoma in this country every hour of every day. The answer to this increasing problem is not a simple one, but public education seems to be a common starting point. The American Cancer Society and the American Academy of Dermatology have published recommendations with regard to sun exposure and sunscreen use. However, patients often ask questions that are not as easily answered. Questions such as, Which sunscreens are the safest? Are tanning beds safe? If I limit my sun exposure, do I need to take vitamin D supplements? If I tanned as a teenager, is the damage already done? How do I treat sunburn? Full text available free through PubMed.
Abstract: Surgery and radiotherapy in the treatment of cutaneous melanoma.
Adequate surgical management of primary melanoma and regional lymph node metastasis, and rarely distant metastasis, is the only established curative treatment. Surgical management of primary melanomas consists of excisions with 1-2 cm margins and primary closure. Full text available free through PubMed.
Abstract: Sentinel lymph node biopsy for melanoma: indications and rationale.
BACKGROUND: The disease status of regional lymph nodes is the most important prognostic indicator for patients with melanoma. Sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) was developed as a technique to surgically assess the regional lymph nodes and spare node-negative patients unnecessary and potentially morbid complete lymphadenectomies. METHODS: We reviewed the literature on SLNB for cutaneous melanoma to provide insight into the rationale for the current widespread use of SLNB. Full text available free through PubMed.
Abstract: Immunotherapy of distant metastatic disease.
Immunotherapy of metastatic melanoma consists of various approaches leading to specific or non-specific immunomodulation. The use of FDA-approved interleukin (IL)-2 alone, in combination with interferon alpha, and/or with various chemotherapeutic agents (biochemotherapy) is associated with significant toxicity and poor efficacy that does not improve overall survival of 96% of patients. Many studies with allogeneic and autologous vaccines have demonstrated no clinical benefit, and some randomised trials even showed a detrimental effect in the vaccine arm. The ongoing effort to develop melanoma vaccines based on dendritic cells and peptides is driven by advances in understanding antigen presentation and processing, and by new techniques of vaccine preparation, stabilisation and delivery. Several agents that have shown promising activity in metastatic melanoma including IL-21 and monoclonal antibodies targeting cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated antigen 4 (anti-CTLA-4) or CD137 are discussed. Full text available free through PubMed.
Abstract: Treatment of lentigo maligna (melanoma in situ) with the immune response modifier imiquimod.
BACKGROUND: Surgical excision is the treatment of choice for lentigo maligna (LM), or melanoma in situ. Topical application of imiquimod, a local immune response modifier, is a novel therapeutic approach that leads to LM tumor clearance. This pilot, open-label, nonrandomized study evaluates the efficacy of imiquimod in patients with LM and other systemic problems that make them poor surgical risks. Full text available free through PubMed.
Abstract: Staging of cutaneous melanoma.
The American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) staging of cutaneous melanoma is a continuously evolving system. The identification of increasingly more accurate prognostic factors has led to major changes in melanoma staging over the years, and the current system described in this review will likely be modified in the near future. Likewise, application of new imaging techniques has also changed the staging work-up of patients with cutaneous melanoma. Full text available free through PubMed.
Abstract: Update on sunscreens.
Sunscreens have been around for more than 70 years. Designed originally to protect against sunburn, recognition of the various harmful effects of ultraviolet (UV) radiation has broadened the use of sunscreens. The addition of effective UVA sunscreen agents has enabled claims beyond protection against sunburn to include prevention of idiopathic photodermatosis, actinic keratoses, skin cancer, and photoaging. This article will review some of the recent advances in photoprotection, including the development of sunscreen formulations offering higher and broader protection against solar radiation. Full text available free through PubMed.
Abstract: Sun exposure and vitamin D sufficiency.
Ultraviolet radiation is a carcinogen that also compromises skin appearance and function. Because the ultraviolet action spectra for DNA damage, skin cancer, and vitamin D(3) photosynthesis are identical and vitamin D is readily available from oral supplements, why has sun protection become controversial? Full text available free through PubMed.
Looking for a Top-Rated
Dermatologist, Oncologist, or Surgeon?
Consumers' Guide to Top Doctors finds the Doctors Rated Best by other Doctors
To find out who the top doctors are around the country, nonprofit Consumers' CHECKBOOK surveyed roughly 340,000 physicians to tell us which specialists they would want to care for a loved one. The Top Doctors database contains the names of over 23,000 doctors who were mentioned most often. Find top-rated doctors in the fifty largest metropolitan areas, in over thirty-five specialties, and more.
Anatomy of The Skin
Source: National Cancer Institute, NIH.
Melanoma / Skin Cancer Detection & Prevention Month
Source: American Academy of Dermatology
Consumers' Guide to Top Doctors finds the Doctors Rated Best by other Doctors in over 30 specialties.
Search Top Doctors
database of 23,000 top-rated physicians by
Doctor's Name
Search Top
Doctors database of 23,000 top-rated
physicians by Specialty
From the American Academy of Dermatologists
Public Service Announcement
Consumers' Guide to Hospitals
Which Hospital Should You Choose
"What makes the Consumers' Guide to Hospitals so special?
We've got 30 million answers to that question. That's how many hospital records Consumers' CHECKBOOK sifted through to calculate risk-adjusted death rates and adverse-outcome rates, and that's just part of the data used to rate the hospitals. The organization also sent out more than 280,000 questionnaires to physicians in 53 major metropolitan areas in the United States, asking them to rate their local hospitals; checked ratings of the hospitals by surveyed consumers; checked which hospitals were providing recommended tests and procedures for patients with specified medical problems; and more."
AARP The Magazine
A Public Service Announcement
Source: AAD
Choose the Right Hat
Source: Australian Cancer Council
