title: A systematic review of prognosis and therapy of anal malignant melanoma: a plea for more precise reporting of location and thickness.
abstract: Anal malignant melanoma (AMM) is a rare tumor with poor prognosis. We performed a systematic review of reports on wide local excision (WLE) and abdominoperineal resection (APR) for treatment of AMM in an attempt to define a precise set of reporting measures for outcomes of treatment  of AMM. A systematic review of the literature was performed. Demographic data, surgical treatment, pathology, and survival rates were recorded. We compared WLE versus APR in terms of the overall survival time, the disease-free survival, and overall survival at 60 months. Twenty-one  reports met the inclusion criteria. Notably, of these, 10 did not specify thickness of the primary melanoma. Interestingly, groin lymph node status was described in 19 of 21 reports, whereas location was specified in only 12 papers and thickness (depth in mm) in only 11. The median survival  times of patients undergoing WLE (n = 324) and those undergoing APR (n = 369) are comparable (20 and 21 months, respectively). The mean median survival at 60 months was 15 per cent for WLE and 14 per cent for APR. The mean disease-free survival at 60 months was found to be 10 per cent for  WLE and 6 per cent for APR. Patient selection for such a rare neoplasm yields very similar outcomes for both conservative and radical treatments. There is a wide variation in the reporting of both clinical and treatment outcomes. More uniformity of reporting of pathologic features and node  status is essential before rational assessment of results can be done.
authors.affiliation: Section of Colorectal Surgery, Department of Surgery, Price Institute of Surgical Research, University of Louisville School of Medicine, Louisville, Kentucky 40292, USA.
authors.forename: Ziad
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Kanaan
authors.forename: Aaron
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mulhall
authors.forename: Suhal
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mahid
authors.forename: Marla L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Torres
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: McCafferty
authors.forename: Kelly M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: McMasters
authors.forename: Carlton
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hornung
authors.forename: Susan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Galandiuk
mesh_terms: D001005:Anus Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D008197:Lymph Node Excision; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008545:Melanoma / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery*; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness; D011379:Prognosis; D015996:Survival Rate; D016896:Treatment Outcome