title: Current surgical management of melanoma.
abstract: The surgical management of melanoma has changed dramatically over the last few decades. Through the development and conduction of well-designed, prospective, randomized trials, we have been able to refine the way that we surgically manage patients with melanoma. Indeed, many important issues have been addressed through such trials: the proper surgical margins for the primary melanoma, utility of the elective lymph node dissection and the role for selective lymphadenectomy, to name a few. This review will also discuss what we have learned from past clinical trials and address several issues with regards to where we are going in the future.
authors.affiliation: Surgical Oncology Services and Associate Professor of Surgery, University of South Alabama--Mitchell Cancer Institute, Cutaneous Oncology Program, 307 North University Blvd, MSB 2015, Mobile, Alabama 36688, USA. ariker@usouthal.edu
authors.forename: Adam I
authors.initials: AI
authors.lastname: Riker
authors.forename: Lisa
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Kirksey
authors.forename: Lee
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Thompson
authors.forename: Amy
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Morris
authors.forename: C Wayne
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Cruse
mesh_terms: D001706:Biopsy; D006801:Humans; D008545:Melanoma / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000401:mortality / Q000601:surgery*; D010348:Patient Care Team; D012008:Recurrence; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000401:mortality / Q000601:surgery*; D013514:Surgical Procedures, Operative / Q000639:trends*; D016019:Survival Analysis