A statistical study on malignant melanoma over the past 12 years in Fukui University Hospital

The survival rate of patients with malignant melanoma is still low, and there is no established chemotherapeutic method. With the appearance of molecular targeted drugs, improvement in the survival rate can be expected. However, at present, malignant melanoma remains a disease associated with one of the poorest prognoses.

We analyzed a total of 51 cases of malignant melanoma who were treated at the Department of Dermatology, University of Fukui from September 2001 to May 2013.

The survival rate was significantly lower in patients aged ≥65 years. The 5-year survival rate was 100 % for Stage 0/I, 79.59 % for Stage II, and 52 % for Stage III. The incidence of lymph node metastasis was highest in nodular melanoma, and zero in lentigo maligna melanoma. There was a significantly high risk of lymph node metastasis in the presence of ulceration. There was no association between incisional biopsy and lymph node metastasis.

Although the data were obtained in only one institution and the number of cases was limited in this study, the results are close to previous international data.