What’s the Plan for Patients With Melanoma After Surgery?
Source: CureToday, January 2024
“When we talk about recurrence of melanoma, we actually worry more about what we cannot see, what’s on the inside,” Dr. Justine V. Cohen of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute told CURE®.
Patients with melanoma that is fully resectable (meaning it can be removed via surgery) and their care teams need to remain vigilant in case of possible disease recurrence or metastasis (when cancer spreads to other parts of a patient’s body).
“Patients often worry that there’s going to be a new melanoma that occurs on their skin and so they’re checking their skin very diligently,” Dr. Justine V. Cohen, a medical oncologist with the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, told CURE®. “And that is true. Once a patient has a melanoma, there is about a 10% chance that they will develop another melanoma in their lifetime. And they should be very cautious in the sun; we say don’t go out during the hours of 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in direct sunlight without protection (and) without wearing sun protection and sunscreen and a wide-brimmed hat and long sleeves and long pants.”