Men With Melanoma Have Worse Survival Rates Than Women

Source: Dermatology Advisor, February 2020

Men with melanoma have worse survival rates than women, possibly related to delayed diagnosis, study results published in the Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology suggest.

The study was an analysis of data obtained from the Dutch Nationwide Network and Registry of Histopathology and Cytopathology (PALGA). Only data of patients with primary, cutaneous stage 1, 2, and 3 melanoma without clinically detectable nodal disease who were treated in the Netherlands between 2000 and 2014 were included. The Netherlands Cancer Registry was used to obtain follow-up data. Researchers calculated multivariable relative excess risks (RER) to compare relative survival rates in men (n=23,879) and women (n=30,766).

A significantly greater percentage of men with melanoma were included in the PALGA in 2014 vs 2000 (47.3% vs 41.7%, respectively; P <.001). In addition, in 2000, 51.5% of the deceased cohort was comprised of men compared with 60.1% in 2014 (P <.001). At the time of diagnosis, men had thicker melanomas compared with women (median Breslow thickness, 1.00 mm [interquartile range (IQR), 0.60-2.00] vs 0.82 mm [IQR, 0.50-1.50], respectively; P <.001).