The "spaghetti technique": an alternative to Mohs surgery or staged surgery for problematic lentiginous melanoma (lentigo maligna and acral lentiginous melanoma).

Background: Lentigo maligna (LM) and acral lentiginous melanoma (ALM) are often large and clinically ill defined. The surgical challenge is to spare tissue while still achieving clear margins.

Objective: We sought to provide a retrospective assessment of a two-phase surgical technique for lentiginous melanomas (MM) not suitable for en bloc resection.

Methods: In the first phase, a narrow band of skin, "the spaghetti", is resected just beyond the clinical outline of the MM, immediately sutured, and sent for pathological examination without removing the MM. The same procedure is repeated beyond the segments which are shown to be not tumor free and so forth until the minimal tumor-free perimeter is outlined. No operative wound is left between operative sessions. In the second phase, the MM resection and reconstruction are performed at the same time.

Results: In 21 patients with LM (n = 16) or ALM (n = 5), the mean operative defect size was 27.5 cm(2) (range, 1.97-108.4 cm(2)). The mean number of steps in the procedure was 1.55 (1-4). Grafts were used for reconstruction in all cases. The relevance of the "spaghetti"-defined outline was confirmed in 19 of 21 patients. After a median follow-up period of 25.36 months (range, 0-72 months), the local control rate was 95.24% with one case (4.76%) of in-transit invasive recurrence after 48 months.

Limitations: This study was performed at a single center and included a limited number of patients. The follow-up time was relatively brief.

Conclusion: The "spaghetti technique" is simple and reliable for LM and ALM. Unlike Mohs surgery, it does not require specific training of surgeons or pathologists. Unlike staged surgery, it does not leave patients with an open wound on the face or soles before final reconstruction.