Local and regional therapy for primary and locally recurrent melanoma.

In the vast majority of cases, cutaneous melanoma presents as localized disease and is treated with wide excision and sentinel lymph node biopsy, with shared decision making regarding completion lymph node dissection and adjuvant systemic therapy. The treatment of recurrent and in-transit disease is more complex, with further options for regional and systemic therapies and multiple variables to be factored into decisions. Rates of overall and complete response to regional therapies can be quite high in carefully chosen patients, which limits the need for systemic therapies and their inherent side effects. Ongoing trials aim to assess the efficacy of combination regional and systemic therapies and assist in deciding among these options. This review discusses the treatment of primary melanoma and regional nodal disease and offers an in-depth discussion of options for the treatment of recurrent melanoma and in-transit melanoma.