de Vries, E et al. (2004) Monitoring stage-specific trends in melanoma incidence across Europe reveals the need for more complete information on diagnostic characteristics. Eur J Cancer Prev 13: 387–395

de Vries et al. have recently published their new analysis of melanoma incidence in Europe. The purpose of the study was to determine the stage distribution of cutaneous malignant melanomas, and to identify temporal trends. Since prevention campaigns have aimed to raise awareness of the disease, the authors anticipated an increase in the frequency of earlier stage lesions.

Twenty-one members of the European Network of Cancer Registries supplied data on all melanoma registrations in their respective regions: a total of 36,253 male and 47,703 female melanoma cases. Information on tumor stage—as indicated by TNM classification, Breslow thickness, Clark level of invasion, or registry-specific systems—was recoded according to the T classification system.

The quality of the data was variable, with stage information missing in up to 60% of cases in some registries. Only nine of the registries provided adequate data for analysis of trends. The authors were able, however, to draw some conclusions from the study. Stage distribution tended to be less favorable in populations with lower incidence of melanoma. Although several registries showed a high proportion of stage T3 and T4 lesions at diagnosis, there had been an overall increase in the proportion of early stage melanomas in recent years.

The authors note that better quality registry data are needed, to allow monitoring of stage-specific trends and to support prevention strategies.