Analysis of important surgical methods for treating malignant melanoma

Surgery is currently a commonly used method for treating malignant melanoma, and it is very effective in treating malignant melanoma. What are the common surgical methods for treating malignant melanoma ? Here are some common surgical methods for treating malignant melanoma.

In general, common surgical treatments for malignant melanoma include:

1. Biopsy: For suspected malignant melanoma, the lesion together with the surrounding 0.5cm to 1cm normal skin and subcutaneous fat should be removed in one piece for pathological examination. If it is confirmed to be malignant melanoma, the depth of infiltration will determine whether additional extensive excision is needed. Generally, incisional or forceps biopsy is not performed unless the lesion has ulcerated or the lesion is too large and one excision will cause disfigurement or disability and must be confirmed by pathology first. However, the incisional biopsy must be connected to radical surgery as close as possible. In a prospective analysis, the World Health Organization Collaborating Center for Diagnosis and Treatment Evaluation of Malignant Melanoma believes that excisional biopsy not only has no adverse effect on prognosis, but also can understand the depth and range of infiltration of the lesion through biopsy, which is conducive to formulating a more reasonable and appropriate surgical plan.

2. Regional lymph node dissection: It is a common treatment method for malignant melanoma and is suitable for: ① Patients with lesion thickness ≤ 1mm have a very low metastasis rate and preventive lymph node dissection cannot be expected to change the long-term prognosis; ② Patients with lesion thickness > 3.5cm-4mm have a high possibility of occult distant metastasis and a relatively low long-term survival rate (20%-30%). Even if preventive lymph node dissection is performed, it is difficult to expect a significant improvement in survival rate. Despite this, many people advocate that preventive lymph node dissection should be performed as long as there are no distant metastatic lesions to be found; ③ Lesions with a thickness between the above two categories have a very high occult lymph node metastasis rate and are the best candidates for preventive lymph node dissection to improve survival.

3. Palliative resection: For patients with large lesions and distant metastases who are not suitable for radical surgery, debulking or palliative resection may be considered to relieve ulcer bleeding or pain, as long as anatomical conditions permit. This is also a common treatment for malignant melanoma.

The above is an introduction to the common surgical treatment methods for malignant melanoma. I believe everyone has some understanding of this. Patients with malignant melanoma should choose the treatment method that suits them according to their actual condition and should not choose blindly.