Mohammd Ebrahimzade Ardakani, Mohammad Akhavan Tafti, Najme Dehghanizade,
Volume 5, Issue 3 (Volume 5, Number 3 2014)
Abstract
Background and Aim: Malignant melanoma is a rare and most malignant type of skin cancer which is originated from melanocytes. It is capable of infiltrating into interior organs and could cause mortality. The aim of this study is to analyze the survival of patients with malignant melanoma according to their age, gender, mitosis count, tumor thickness, level of lymphocyte infiltration, tumor location and the stage of the tumor.
Methods: This is a descriptive-analytical study which has been done on, the data of 61 patients with malignant melanoma registered in pathology laboratory of Shahid Sadoughi hospital, Yazd. A questionnaire was used to collect the data via phone call, examining pathology slides and reviewing patients information.
Results: The average survival time was 61.09±6.12 months.The mean age of the patients was 67.9±6.0 with the range of 18 to 89 years. Stage Ι had the best and stage ΙΙΙ and VΙ had the worst prognosis. The best survival rate was seen in malignant melanomas located on trunk, head and neck. Malignant melanoma of extremities had the worst prognosis. There was a statistically significant relationship between survival rate and stage (P=0.033) as well as the location of the tumor (P=0.0421).
Conclusion: The survival of patients with malignant melanoma in Yazd had a statistically significant relationship with stage and the location of tumor but there was no significant relationship with mitosis count, gender, age, tumor depth and lymphocyte infiltration.
