Wide local excision prior to sentinel lymph node biopsy for primary melanoma of the head and neck

Wide Local Excision Before Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy in Melanoma

BACKGROUND

Current guidelines suggest that wide local excision of thick melanomas be delayed until sentinel lymph node biopsies can be performed.

OBJECTIVE

To examine the literature and determine if there is a scientific basis for delaying wide local excision of thick melanomas.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A narrative review of the literature was undertaken to examine all available studies on the subject.

RESULTS

There is no evidence that prior excision compromises sentinel lymph node identification. There are multiple unsubstantiated suggestions that large rotation flaps may lead to false negatives.

CONCLUSION

There is no basis for delaying wide local excision of thick melanomas until a sentinel lymph node biopsy can be performed.

Differences in sentinel lymph node biopsy utilization in eligible melanoma patients treated with Mohs micrographic surgery or wide local excision: A population-based logistic regression model and survival analysis

BACKGROUND

Primary melanoma management relies on tumor extirpation and staging sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) in eligible patients. This study compares SLNB utilization in patients undergoing wide local excision (WLE) or Mohs micrographic surgery (MMS).

METHODS

American Joint Committee on Cancer seventh edition ≥ patients with T1b melanoma undergoing WLE or MMS in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results program were included. Propensity score matching was performed to compare patients who underwent MMS or WLE. Kaplan-Meier analysis and Fine-Gray cumulative incidence functions were used for overall and melanoma-specific survival.

RESULTS

Eight hundred twenty-five MMS cases and 38,760 WLE cases were identified. SLNB was performed in 32.61% of MMS patients and 61.77% of WLE patients with positive rates of 12.5% and 14.82%, respectively. Multiple logistic regression of factors associated with SLNB utilization revealed that WLE, male gender, younger age, extremity location, and nodular and rare melanoma subtypes were significantly associated with increased odds of receiving SLNB whereas head and neck location and lentigo maligna melanoma subtype were significantly less likely to receive SLNB.

LIMITATIONS

Potential selection bias from a retrospective data set.

CONCLUSION

Patients receiving WLE for ≥ T1b melanoma are more likely to receive a SLNB than patients undergoing MMS.

Predictors of Nodal Metastasis in Cutaneous Head and Neck Cancers

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

The complex and varied drainage patterns in the head and neck present a challenge in the regional control of cutaneous neoplasms. Lymph node involvement significantly diminishes survival, often warranting more aggressive treatment. Here, we review the risk factors associated with lymphatic metastasis, in the context of the evolving role of sentinel lymph node biopsy.

RECENT FINDINGS

In cutaneous head and neck melanomas, tumor thickness, age, size, mitosis, ulceration, and specific histology have been associated with lymph node metastasis (LNM). In head and neck cutaneous squamous cell carcinomas, tumor thickness, size, perineural invasion, and immunosuppression are all risk factors for nodal metastasis. The risk factors for lymph node involvement in Merkel cell carcinoma are not yet fully defined, but emerging evidence indicates that tumor thickness and size may be  associated with regional metastasis. The specific factors that predict a greater risk of LNM for cutaneous head and neck cancers generally include depth of invasion, tumor size, mitotic rate, ulceration, immunosuppression, and other histopathological factors.

The Use and Technique of Sentinel Node Biopsy for Skin Cancer

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

After studying this article, the participant should be able to: 1. Understand the indications for and prognostic value of sentinel lymph node biopsy in skin cancer. 2. Learn the advantages and disadvantages of various modalities used alone or in combination when performing sentinel lymph node biopsy. 3. Understand how to perform sentinel lymph node biopsy in skin cancer patients.

SUMMARY

Advances in technique used to perform sentinel lymph node biopsy to assess lymph node status have led to increased accuracy of the procedure and improved patient outcomes.

Compliance with sentinel lymph node biopsy guidelines for invasive melanomas treated with Mohs micrographic surgery

BACKGROUND

Sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) has not been studied for invasive melanomas treated with Mohs micrographic surgery using frozen-section MART-1 immunohistochemical stains (MMS-IHC). The primary objective of this study was to assess the accuracy and compliance with National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) guidelines for SLNB in a cohort of patients who had invasive melanoma treated with MMS-IHC.

METHODS

This retrospective cohort study included all patients who had primary, invasive, cutaneous melanomas treated with MMS-IHC at a single academic center between March 2006 and April 2018. The primary outcomes were the rates of documenting discussion and performing SLNB in patients who were eligible based on NCCN guidelines. Secondary outcomes were the rate of identifying the sentinel lymph node and the percentage of positive lymph nodes.

RESULTS

In total, 667 primary, invasive, cutaneous melanomas (American Joint Committee on Cancer T1a-T4b) were treated with MMS-IHC. The median patient age was 69 years (range, 25-101 years). Ninety-two percent of tumors were located on specialty sites (head and/or neck, hands and/or feet, pretibial leg). Discussion of SLNB was documented for 162 of 176 (92%) SLNB-eligible patients, including 127 of 127 (100%) who had melanomas with a Breslow depth >1 mm. SLNB was performed in 109 of 176 (62%) SLNB-eligible patients, including 102 of 158 melanomas (65%) that met NCCN criteria to discuss and offer SLNB and 7 of 18 melanomas (39%) that met criteria to discuss and consider SLNB. The sentinel lymph node was successfully identified in 98 of 109 patients (90%) and was positive in 6 of those 98 patients (6%).

CONCLUSIONS

Combining SLNB and MMS-IHC allows full pathologic staging and confirmation of clear microscopic margins before reconstruction of specialty site invasive melanomas. SLNB can be performed accurately and in compliance with consensus guidelines in patients with melanoma using MMS-IHC.

Amelanotic melanoma of the head and neck: analysis of tumor characteristics from the National Cancer Database

BACKGROUND

Amelanotic melanoma is an extremely rare subtype of cutaneous melanoma. The tumor characteristics are still not well understood, especially for those located in the head and neck.

METHODS

Tumor characteristics of patients diagnosed with amelanotic melanoma of the head and neck (AMHN) from January 1, 2004, to December 31, 2015, were analyzed by querying the National Cancer Database. Characteristics of AMHN were subsequently compared with common malignant melanoma of the head and neck (CMMHN).

RESULTS

Three hundred and sixty-eight patients were diagnosed with AMHN, and 69,267 were diagnosed with CMMHN. Of those with AMHN, 128 (34.8%) had melanoma located on the scalp and neck, and 172 (46.7%) were diagnosed with an early disease stage (i.e., 0, I, or II). When compared with CMMHN, patients with AMHN were more likely to be diagnosed after 80 years of age (25.3% vs. 18.2%; odds ratio [OR], 3.28; 95% CI, 1.09-9.84; P = 0.03), when Breslow depth was between 2.01 and 4.00 mm (28.5% vs. 6.5%; OR, 1.92; 95% CI, 1.15-3.19; P = 0.01), when ulceration was present (36.7% vs. 9.0%; OR, 1.99; 95% CI, 1.34-2.97; P = 0.001), and when mitotic count was 1 or more/mm² (40.5% vs. 12.8%; OR; 2.53; 95% CI, 1.09-5.89; P = 0.03). No statistical difference was found for sex, specific location, stage, or lymph node involvement.

CONCLUSION

Our study determined that AMHN is associated with older age, increased Breslow depth, presence of ulceration, and greater mitotic count when compared with CMMHN.

Lymphoscintigraphy for Sentinel Node Mapping in Head and Neck Cancer

The aim of this comprehensive review is to describe and analyze the role of the sentinel node mapping in head and neck cancers. For this purpose, head and neck neoplasms have been categorized in cutaneous malignancies and neoplasms of the upper aerodigestive tract. A concise description of lymphatic drainage will be the "prelude" for each section, as well as the description of the injection techniques, when specific. Concisely, the attention has been focused on detection rate of the sentinel node by lymphoscintigraphy for each cancer, and for those patients in which the sentinel lymph node has been identified, true-positives rates, false-negative rates, and overall accuracy has been pointed out. Overall, in cutaneous neoplasms of the head and neck, the detection rate is higher than 90%, however the false-negative rate is still an issue, in particular in melanoma, inducing the need for newer developments. In fact, new tracers and techniques are already available, while prospective multicenter trials exploring the outcome impact are needed in the near future. For the upper aerodigestive tract and in particular oral cavity and oropharynx, sentinel lymph node identification by lymphoscintigraphy allows avoiding unnecessary neck dissection and/or node irradiation. Even in this case, the main limit remains the risk of false-negative rates. While, for patients affected by laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancers the data seem very limited and, although the feasibility has been demonstrated, performances of this lymphoscintigraphy still need to be confirmed by multicenter studies.