"Gloves-and-socks" melanoma: does histology make a difference?

BACKGROUND

Acral lentiginous melanoma (ALM) is associated with low survival.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of the study was to compare the clinical course of ALM, non-ALM hand and foot melanoma, and melanoma of the extremities in nonacral locations.

METHODS

Data on 168 patients operated on for cutaneous melanoma of the extremities from 1993 to 2005 were examined. Twenty-nine had ALM, 16 non-ALM, and 123 other-extremity melanoma. All known melanoma prognosticators were analyzed for their impact on survival at a median of 53 months' follow-up.

RESULTS

The ALM group was significantly older (p=.015). No differences between the ALM and non-ALM groups were noted in tumor characteristics, lymph node status, and survival. However, the other-extremity melanoma group presented with significantly thinner lesions, fewer positive sentinel lymph nodes, and lower tumor stage and, consequently, had significantly better disease-specific and disease-free survival (p=.006, p=.0001). The acral lesions were nearly free of peritumoral lymphocytic infiltration. Multivariate analysis identified only tumor thickness (p=.0127), stage (p=.00001), and patient age (p=.012) as independent prognosticators of disease-specific survival.

CONCLUSION

Cutaneous melanomas in acral sites, regardless of histology, tend to be diagnosed at an advanced stage probably owing to older patient age, difficult-to-see sites, and biologic factors, leading to reduced patient survival.