title: The light and the dark of dermatoscopy in the early diagnosis of melanoma: facts and controversies.
abstract: Early diagnosis remains the best method to reduce melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancer-related mortality and morbidity. Dermatoscopy was first introduced at the end of the last century, and besides the strict criticism that it initially received, the majority of the scientific community presently considers it revolutionary in the field of melanocytic lesion diagnostics. Cumulative evidence provides definite data that dermatoscopy improves the clinicians' diagnostic accuracy for melanoma compared with other clinical diagnostic approaches. There remain some barriers for its use such as lack of training, lack of time, and lack of reimbursement, as well as persisting skepticism about its true utility. In the current contribution, we focus on false beliefs and facts concerning dermatoscopy in the early diagnosis of melanoma and shed some light on some of the remaining "dark sides" of this issue.
authors.affiliation: State Clinic of Dermatology, Hospital of Skin and Venereal Diseases, 124 Delfon Street, 54643, Thessaloniki, Greece.
authors.forename: Zoe
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Apalla
authors.forename: Aimilios
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lallas
authors.forename: Giuseppe
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Argenziano
authors.forename: Cinzia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ricci
authors.forename: Simonetta
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Piana
authors.forename: Elvira
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Moscarella
authors.forename: Caterina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Longo
authors.forename: Iris
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Zalaudek
mesh_terms: D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D003880:Dermatology / Q000193:education; D046169:Dermoscopy / Q000191:economics / Q000193:education; D055088:Early Detection of Cancer; D006801:Humans; D007349:Insurance, Health, Reimbursement; D008545:Melanoma / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D013997:Time Factors