Cutaneous melanoma frequencies and seasonal trend in 20 years of observation of a population characterised by excessive sun exposure

BACKGROUND: Cutaneous melanoma is an aggressive form of skin cancer. It has become an increasingly common neoplasm in the most developed countries, especially among individuals of European origin. PATIENTS AND METHODS. Anonymous data of patients with cutaneous melanoma were collected from the diagnostic database of the University Hospital of Trieste from 1 January 1990 to 10 December 2013. Our study is based on a population which was constant over the period of observation; it was also well-defined and characterised by unrestrained sun exposure. RESULTS: The number of cutaneous melanomas increased during the period of observation with a seasonality trend and gender related differences both for anatomical sites distribution and stage of the disease. Moreover, 6% of our cohort developed multiple melanomas. CONCLUSIONS: In a well-defined population devoted to excessive sun exposure the frequencies of skin melanomas roughly doubled from 1990 to 2013 following a seasonal trend. In that population, prevention efforts according to gender specific risk behaviour, as well as follow-up programmes both for evaluation of metastatic spreading and for early diagnosis of additional skin melanomas, are crucial due to gender specific differences and to the occurrence of multiple melanomas.