Surgical management of primary melanoma

A significant proportion of the general population is diagnosed with malignant melanoma each year, and more people die of melanoma now than at any time in the past. Consequently, treatment of melanoma at all stages of development is an important clinical issue. A variety of management options are discussed here, including biopsy techniques and treatment of the primary melanoma. The latter include lymphatic mapping and sentinel lymph node biopsy, hyperthermic isolated limb perfusion, and surgery for stage IV melanoma patients. Procedure-associated benefits and possible complications associated with each modality are also summarized.