[Clinical practice guideline: 2005 update of recommendations for the management of patients with cutaneous melanoma without distant metastases (summary report)].

Context: The National French federation of comprehensive cancer centres (FNCLCC) and the French society of dermatology (SFD) initiated together the update of clinical practice guideline for the management of patients with cutaneous melanoma in collaboration with the French national cancer institute and with specialists from French public universities, general hospitals and private clinics. This work is based on the methodology developed in the "Standards, Options and Recommendations" (SOR) project.

Objectives: To update SOR guidelines for the management of patients with cutaneous melanoma previously validated in 1998 and French melanoma consensus conference published by SFD and ANAES in 1995.

Methods: The methodology is based on a literature review and critical appraisal by a multidisciplinary group of experts who define the CPGs according to the definitions of the Standards, Options and Recommendations project. Once the guidelines have been developed, they are reviewed by independent reviewers.

Results: This article is a summary version of the updated clinical practice guidelines with algorithms. The main questions addressed by the expert group in this update concerned (1) The new AJCC-UICC classification (2) Excision margins (3) Sentinel node biopsy (4) Adjuvant treatments (5) Initial staging and follow up of operated patients.