Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 28, 2025
08:49
A 3D Organotypic Melanoma Spheroid Skin Model
Published on: May 18, 2018
15.7K
Could the mitotic count improve personalized prognosis in melanoma patients?
Alessandra Buja1, Massimo Rugge2,3, Claudia Cozzolino4
1Department of Cardiac, Thoracic, Vascular Sciences and Public Health, University of Padova, Padova, Italy.
Plos One
|April 16, 2024
Summary
The mitotic rate is a significant prognostic factor for melanoma patients, correlating with survival and mortality. This finding supports its inclusion in melanoma diagnosis for personalized treatment strategies.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Dermatology
- Pathology
Background:
- Mitotic rate is a potential prognostic indicator in melanoma.
- Previous studies suggest a link between mitotic rate and poor prognosis.
- The association with other prognostic factors requires further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between mitotic rate and clinical/anatomopathological characteristics in melanoma.
- To determine the prognostic value of mitotic rate after adjusting for other factors.
- To identify subgroups of patients where mitotic rate has greater prognostic significance for 3-year mortality.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of invasive cutaneous malignant melanoma cases from the Veneto Cancer Registry (2015, 2017).
- Kaplan-Meier curves for overall survival by mitotic classes.
- Cox regression models to assess the independent prognostic role of mitotic rate cut-offs.
Main Results:
- Mitotic rate is associated with TNM staging variables (thickness, ulceration, lymph node status, metastasis) and non-TNM factors (age, site, morphology, growth pattern, TIL).
- Mitotic rate independently predicts higher mortality, especially in T2 melanoma patients, after adjusting for other prognostic factors.
- Mitotic rate demonstrates prognostic significance across various patient subgroups.
Conclusions:
- Mitotic rate is an independent prognostic factor in melanoma.
- Histological inclusion of mitotic rate is recommended for improved melanoma prognosis assessment.
- Mitotic rate can inform personalized medicine approaches for melanoma treatment and monitoring.
