Stage II and III Cutaneous Melanoma Associated With Lower Life Expectancy
Source: Dermatology Advisor, February 2024
Patients with stage II or III cutaneous melanoma had significantly decreased life expectancy (LE) compared to people in the general population, according to study results published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology.
Researchers conducted a population-based cohort study, sourcing data from the Swedish Melanoma Registry (SweMR) to assess loss in LE (LLE) in high-risk patients with resected stages II and III cutaneous melanoma, compared with that of the general population in Sweden. Included patients (N=8061) were diagnosed with stage II or III cutaneous melanoma between 2005 and 2018. Patient follow-up (duration, ?12 years) was performed from the point of cancer diagnosis until death, emigration, or December 31, 2020, whichever occurred first. The researchers used flexible parametric survival (FPM) models to evaluate SweMR data including patient sex, disease stage, and age at melanoma diagnosis in their analysis.
Among patients with stage II (n=5929) or stage III (n=2132) melanoma, the median ages were 68 and 64 (range, 40-80) years; and 57.9% and 60.9% were men, respectively.