Delays in the surgical treatment of melanoma are associated with worsened overall and melanoma-specific mortality: A population-based analysis

Background: The effect of treatment delays on melanoma outcomes remains unclear. Objective: To assess the impact of surgical treatment delays on melanoma-specific mortality (MSM) and overall mortality (OM). Methods: Patients with stage I to III cutaneous melanoma were identified through the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database (N = 108,689). Included cases had time from diagnosis to definitive surgery and follow-up time. Cox proportional hazards and Fine-Gray competing risks analyses were used to assess the impact of treatment delays on mortality. Results: Across all stages, treatment delays of 3 to 5 months were associated with worse MSM and any delay beyond 1 month was associated with worse OM. In a subgroup analysis of patients with stage I disease, delays of 3 to 5 months were associated with worse MSM and any delay beyond 1 month was associated with worse OM. In patients with stage II disease, worse MSM was found with delays of 6+ months and worse OM was seen with delays of 3 to 5 months. No significant effect of treatment delays was noted in stage III disease. Limitations: The Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database does not collect comprehensive data on adjuvant treatments, disease recurrence, or treatment failure. Conclusion: Timely treatment of melanoma may be associated with improved OM and MSM.

Automated summary

This study aimed to assess the impact of surgical treatment delays on survival rates of melanoma patients. The results showed that treatment delays were associated with increased melanoma-specific mortality and overall mortality, suggesting that timely treatment of melanoma may improve patient survival rates.