Seasonal variation in dysplastic naevi.
There is a relationship between sunlight and the development of melanocytic neoplasms. Because the incidence and excision of melanocytic neoplasms varies according to season, we sought to determine if dysplasia and/or intraepidermal melanocytic expression differed in a cohort of dysplastic naevi (DN) removed in January compared with a similar cohort removed in August. The DN were graded based on the degree of dysplasia, and the number of intraepidermal melanocytes were counted after immunohistochemical staining with HMB-45 and Melan-A. There was no seasonal difference in the grading of the dysplastic naevi in either season (P = 0.08). Comparing 85 cases from August and 86 from January, there was a larger number of Melan-A-positive melanocytes in the August samples (P < 0.02), and a larger number of HMB-45-positive melanocytes in January (P < 0.01). This difference may be related to seasonal variations such as exposure to ultraviolet light exposure; however, there was no difference between the two groups in the degree of atypia seen.
Department of Pathology, Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, Penn State University, Hershey, PA 17033-0850, USA. mwelsch@hmc.psu.edu
M
M
Welsch
R
R
Marszalek
M
M
Young
J
J
Zhu
L
L
Clarke
K
K
Helm
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000378:metabolism; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004416:Dysplastic Nevus Syndrome / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D058965:MART-1 Antigen / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D008544:Melanocytes / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D058950:Melanoma-Specific Antigens / Q000378:metabolism; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D012621:Seasons; D014466:Ultraviolet Rays / Q000009:adverse effects*; D055815:Young Adult; D058951:gp100 Melanoma Antigen
D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D058965:MART-1 Antigen; D058950:Melanoma-Specific Antigens; C548637:PMEL protein, human; D058951:gp100 Melanoma Antigen