Pediatric melanomas and the atypical spitzoid melanocytic neoplasms

Cutaneous malignancies in the pediatric population are rare. Melanocytic neoplasms have garnered increased attention as the incidence of melanoma rises and as published analyses of biologically indeterminate lesions become more commonplace. Pediatric melanomas have been studied in several large cohort series; still, most of our assumptions for treatment stems from research in the adult population. Many clinicians speculate that pediatric melanomas may be biologically different from the same histological entity in adults given observed differences in metastatic potential and overall outcomes in children. Even more confounding are the atypical spitzoid lesions, which continue to spark debate in the oncology and dermatopathology literature with respect to classification, malignant potential, and recommended treatment course. In this article, recent literature addressing both atypical spitzoid melanocytic neoplasms and melanoma in the pediatric population is discussed.