title: Clinical Recognition of Melanoma in Dermatologists and Nondermatologists.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The incidence of melanoma is increasing annually in Canada.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  This retrospective study was designed to assess the ability of physicians of different specialties to accurately recognize melanoma.
  
  
  METHODS
  Pathology reports of biopsies submitted to Vancouver Coastal Health with clinical diagnoses of melanoma were reviewed (January to July 2013). The clinical diagnoses made by dermatologists, general practitioners and family physicians, and all other specialists were correlated with the final histopathologic diagnoses.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The dermatologists, general practitioners and family physicians, and all other specialists achieved diagnostic accuracies of 24.75%, 3.52%, and 12.75%, respectively.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although the diagnostic accuracy of dermatologists was significantly better than that the other practitioners, the majority of patients with suspicious skin lesions present to family physicians or general practitioners first. Thus, there is considerable value in providing more training and education to nondermatologists, because it can have a meaningful impact on patient care.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada martinka.michal@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Michal J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Martinka
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
authors.forename: Richard I
authors.initials: RI
authors.lastname: Crawford
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology and Skin Science, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
authors.forename: Shannon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Humphrey
mesh_terms: D002983:Clinical Competence; D003880:Dermatology / Q000592:standards / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003951:Diagnostic Errors; D005194:Family Practice / Q000592:standards / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008545:Melanoma / Q000175:diagnosis*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis*
keywords: cancer; dermatology; diagnostic accuracy; education; melanoma; primary care