Through Thick and Thin: Should We Rethink Thickness and Prognosis?

Although the lethal threat of a thick melanoma is known to be greater than that of a thin one, the number of deaths attributed to thin melanomas has not been carefully examined. These authors analyzed melanoma incidence and mortality in Queensland, Australia, which has the world's highest melanoma rates and where all melanoma has been reported since 1990.

During the period 1990–2009, 4218 people died from cutaneous melanoma (67% males). Of these deaths, 19% were associated with thin melanomas (≤1 mm), an increase from the former period, when such melanomas represented 14% of deaths. In the most recent period analyzed, 2005–2009, more melanoma deaths were associated with thin lesions than with thick ones (>4 mm) or metastases (23% of deaths v…