:: Jun-Jul 2008

Welcome to our Monthly Online Newsletter!

View all Treatment articles in our Treatment Report . The most recent articles are listed on top (not in alphabetical order). Click on the Topic on our home page and then the subtopic - Treatment Report. Stay updated on drugs and their side effects, and various other treatments, including exercise, nutrition, and supplements.

Repeated Past Article:

Melanoma Survival Worse With Scalp or Neck Involvement “After accounting for age, Breslow thickness, gender, and ulceration, patients with scalp/neck melanomas were 84% more likely to die from their disease than were patients with melanomas of the extremities. Controlling for lymph node involvement and excluding cases of lentigo maligna and nodular melanoma had minimal impact on the risk seen. So why do scalp/neck melanomas carry a worse prognosis? Dr. Thomas said that it may be that they are inherently more aggressive than those arising at other sites. Alternatively, the vascular supply and lymphatic drainage in the scalp/neck region may enhance the growth and spread of the malignancy.“

ESMO Minimum Clinical Recommendations for diagnosis, treatment and follow-up of cutaneous malignant melanoma (2005)

[Guideline 'Melanoma' (3rd revision)] (2005)

NCCN - Melanoma Treatment Guidelines for Patients ø Version III, September 2005

NGC - Counseling to prevent skin cancer: recommendations and rationale. (2003)

NGC - Cutaneous melanoma. A national clinical guideline. (2003)

NGC - Malignant melanoma. (2005)

NGC - Screening for skin cancer: a clinical practice guideline. (2006)

NGC - Skin cancer. (2005)

NGC - Skin cancer. (2004)

NGC - SKIN CANCER: PART I. SCREENING AND PREVENTION (2003)

NGC - Systemic adjuvant therapy for patients at high risk for recurrent melanoma. (2004)

NGC - U.K. guidelines for the management of cutaneous melanoma. (2002)

SIGN - Cutaneous melanoma (2004)

Featured site

NCI - Melanoma

American Academy of Dermatology

NCI - General Information About Melanoma

NCI - Melanoma

NCI - Melanoma Risk Assessment Tool

NCI - Melanoma (PDQ®): Treatment (Health Professional Version)

NCI - Skin Cancer

NCI - What You Need To Know About Melanoma

NIH - Medical Encyclopedia Melanoma

NIH - Melanoma

NIH - Melanoma Resources

NIH - Melanoma Tutorial

Sunlight and Tanning Beds

Sunlight and Tanning Beds

The World Health Organization recommends that no person under 18 should use a sunbed " Ä the World Health Organization (WHO) is highlighting that sunbed use poses a risk of skin cancer, and that no person under 18 years of age should use a sunbed. It is known that young people who get burnt from exposure to UV will have a greater risk of developing melanoma later in life, and recent studies demonstrate the direct link between the use of sunbeds and cancer."

Sunlight and Tanning Beds

Tanning Beds, Sunlamps, and Risk of Cutaneous Malignant Melanoma (Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers & Prevention 2005) "Conclusions: Results indicate a significantly increased risk of cutaneous melanoma subsequent to sunbed/sunlamp exposure."