Research supports the idea that the often-reported “rise in melanoma” may actually be the result of a change in the diagnosis of the disease.
Reuters reports that study co-author Nick J. Levell from Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital and colleagues had a hunch that some of the "epidemic" was due to the fact that many cases of a skin condition known as benign melanocytic nevi (a type of mole) were now being diagnosed as malignant melanoma.
The researchers looked at diagnoses of melanomas from 1991 and 2004 in the East Anglia region of the U.K., noting that the rate grew from 9.39 cases per year per 100,000 people to 13.91. However, they also found that early-stage melanomas accounted for much of that difference—the rate of diagnoses of later-stage melanomas did not change.
In addition, the rate of death from melanoma rose from 2.16 to 2.54 deaths per 100,000 people per year, but most diagnosed with early-stage melanomas survived.
According to the researchers, this indicates that many melanoma cases of melanoma now being diagnosed would have been considered benign melanocytic nevi in the past.
Source:
Reuters: Is There Really A Skin Cancer Epidemic?
Related Content:
