Mitotic rate in melanoma: a reexamination.

We reexamined the relationship between mitotic rate and overall survival in more than 1,200 cases of cutaneous melanoma with long-term follow-up. Like others, we found that mitotic rate was significantly associated with survival (P < 4 x 10(-8)) and more prognostic than tumor ulceration but was not an independent prognosticator because it was significantly associated with tumor thickness and ulceration. Thus, all 3 histologic variables are interrelated; among these, tumor thickness is the most important.

Differential expression of N-cadherin distinguishes a subset of metastasizing desmoplastic melanomas.

Desmoplastic melanoma is a variant of spindle cell melanoma considered at low risk for distant metastases when compared with other forms of melanoma. The emphasis in the differential diagnosis of desmoplastic melanomas has been placed mostly in distinguishing it from scars and other benign spindle cell proliferations. In contrast, recognizing a subset of desmoplastic melanomas with higher metastatic potential has proven more difficult.