title: Conjunctival melanoma: survival analysis in twenty-two Mexican patients.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To describe the cases of conjunctival melanoma (CM) and report the disease-free interval (DFI) and overall survival (OS).
  
  
  METHODS
  The charts of 22 patients who were admitted to two hospitals between 1985 and 2006 were reviewed for pertinent data, including demographics, site of involvement in the conjunctiva and sub-sites, surgical treatment, and adjuvant treatment.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were 10 (45.45%) males and 12 (54.55%) females. Mean age was 52.3 years. In this group, 15 patients (68.1%) involved the bulbar conjunctiva, and 7 (31.9%) involved the palpebral conjunctiva. Of the 22 patients, 72.72% had a history of conjunctival melanosis. The average tumor size was 20.4 mm. Eight (36.36%) patients underwent orbital exenteration, 2 (9.06%) had enucleation, 5 (22.72%) had wide excision of the lesion followed by radiotherapy, 2 (9.06%) had orbital exenteration with neck dissection, and the remaining 5 patients (22.72%) were considered adequately treated only with wide excision. Eight (36.36%) patients received adjuvant treatment. Disease-free survival at 5 years was 51% and the overall survival at 5 and 10 years was 50% and 37%, respectively.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Conjunctival melanoma is a rare entity. Tumor behavior is aggressive, and the optimal treatment is surgery with adjuvant therapy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Head and Neck Surgery, Instituto Nacional de Cancerología, México, D.F., México.
authors.forename: Rosa Angélica
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Salcedo-Hernández
authors.affiliation: Department of Head and Neck Surgery, Instituto Nacional de Cancerología, México, D.F., México.
authors.forename: Kuauhyama
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Luna-Ortiz
authors.affiliation: Departament of Anatomic Pathology, Instituto Nacional de Cancerología, México, D.F., México.
authors.forename: Leonardo Saúl
authors.initials: LS
authors.lastname: Lino-Silva
authors.affiliation: Department of Head and Neck Surgery, Instituto Nacional de Cancerología, México, D.F., México.
authors.forename: Angel
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Herrera-Gómez
authors.affiliation: Department of Head and Neck Surgery, Instituto Nacional de Cancerología, México, D.F., México.
authors.forename: Verónica
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Villavicencio-Valencia
authors.affiliation: Department of Head and Neck Surgery, Instituto Nacional de Cancerología, México, D.F., México.
authors.forename: Miriam
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tejeda-Rojas
authors.affiliation: Department of Head and Neck Surgery, Instituto Nacional de Cancerología, México, D.F., México.
authors.forename: José F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Carrillo
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003230:Conjunctival Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality* / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D008297:Male; D008545:Melanoma / Q000401:mortality* / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy; D008800:Mexico / Q000208:ethnology; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D047368:Tumor Burden; D055815:Young Adult