This Article  • Full text  • PDF  • Send to a friend  • Save in My Folder  • Save to citation manager  • Permissions  Citing Articles  • Citation map  • Citing articles on HighWire  • Citing articles on Web of Science (19)  • Contact me when this article is cited  Related Content  • Similar articles in this journal  Topic Collections  • Oncology  • Dermatology  • Melanoma  • Alert me on articles by topic  Social Bookmarking   What's this?

Janice N. Cormier, MD, MPH; Yan Xing, MD; Meichun Ding, PhD; Jeffrey E. Lee, MD; Paul F. Mansfield, MD; Jeffrey E. Gershenwald, MD; Merrick I. Ross, MD; Xianglin L. Du, PhD

Arch Intern Med. 2006;166:1907-1914.

Background  Melanoma incidence continues to increase in whites, but little is known about melanoma in minority populations. Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) data were used to examine the incidence, manifestations, and survival in patients with melanoma with respect to race/ethnicity.

Methods  A SEER search (1992-2002) for primary invasive cutaneous melanoma cases identified 48 143 whites, 932 Hispanics, 394 Asian/Pacific islanders, 251 African Americans, and 52 American Indians. Multivariate analyses were performed to evaluate the relationship between race/ethnicity and clinicopathologic factors; associations between race/ethnicity and survival were examined using the Cox proportional hazards model.

Results  Based on our cohort of patients, the average annual age-adjusted melanoma incidence per 100 000 persons was 18.4 for whites compared with 2.3, 0.8, 1.6, and 1.0 for Hispanics, African Americans, American Indians, and Asians, respectively. Lower extremity and acral lentiginous melanomas were more common among minorities. Overall 5-year survival was 72.2% to 81.1% for minorities compared with 89.6% for whites. A 1.96- to 3.01-fold greater risk of disease-specific mortality persisted in minorities compared with whites after adjusting for age, sex, and region. In addition, Hispanics (odds ratio [OR], 3.6), African Americans (OR, 4.2), American Indians (OR, 3.4), and Asians (OR, 2.4) were more likely to present with stage IV melanoma than were whites. African Americans had a 1.48-fold higher rate of risk-adjusted, stage-specific mortality compared with whites.

Conclusions  Melanoma is a public health concern for all ethnic populations. Differences in disease stage at presentation contributes to disparities in survival. Understanding melanoma in minority populations may lead to early detection and ultimately save lives.

Author Affiliations: The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston (Drs Cormier, Xing, Lee, Mansfield, Gershenwald, and Ross); Amgen Inc (Dr Ding), Houston; and The University of Texas School of Public Health, Houston (Dr Du).

CiteULike    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter     What's this?

THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES

Melanoma in Maori, Asian, and Pacific Peoples in New Zealand
Sneyd and Cox
Cancer Epidemiol. Biomarkers Prev. 2009;18:1706-1713.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Adoption of Western Culture by Californian Asian Americans: Attitudes and Practices Promoting Sun Exposure
Gorell et al.
Arch Dermatol 2009;145:552-556.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Acculturation and Sun-Safe Behaviors Among US Latinos: Findings From the 2005 Health Information National Trends Survey
Andreeva et al.
AJPH 2009;99:734-741.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Acral Lentiginous Melanoma: Incidence and Survival Patterns in the United States, 1986-2005
Bradford et al.
Arch Dermatol 2009;145:427-434.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Survival for Patients With Invasive Cutaneous Melanoma Among Ethnic Groups: The Effects of Socioeconomic Status and Treatment
Zell et al.
JCO 2008;26:66-75.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

The Influence of Marital Status on Stage at Diagnosis and Survival of Older Persons With Melanoma
Reyes Ortiz et al.
Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences 2007;62:892-898.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT