Melanoma Overdiagnosis: Awareness May Not Change Behavior
Source: Dermatology Times, May 2022
Dermatopathologists diagnose melanoma at similar rates regardless of whether they think the skin cancer is overdiagnosed.
Being aware of melanoma overdiagnosis does not appear to curtail the rate at which dermatopathologists diagnose melanomas, according to a survey published in JAMA Dermatology.
“Our findings suggest that pathologists are aware of and care about this topic of overdiagnosis, and many of them want to be part of the solution,” senior author Joann G. Elmore, MD, MPH, told Dermatology Times. “Our hope is that pathologists will consider the problem of overdiagnosis when interpreting individual cases.”This consideration creates tension, she said, as dermatologists do not want to misdiagnose a cancer as benign.