Melanoma
Also known as: skin cancer screening
Free to read — no account needed. Sign in only to bookmark this disease and track your study progress.
Guidelines of care for the management of primary cutaneous melanoma
American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) · 2019 · 2019 guideline
The AAD melanoma guideline page, hosting the current guideline on primary cutaneous melanoma published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology. It covers biopsy technique and histopathological reporting, use of laboratory, molecular and imaging tests, surgical margins, sentinel lymph node biopsy for staging, follow-up, and special situations such as pregnancy and familial melanoma.
- The AAD page presents this as its melanoma clinical guideline, covering biopsy, surgical and non-surgical management and follow-up. source
- The underlying document addresses early-stage disease from stage 0 through pathologic stage III. source
- It also covers management of cutaneous toxicities from targeted therapy and immunotherapy used in advanced disease. source
European consensus-based interdisciplinary guideline for melanoma. Part 1: Diagnostics - Update 2024
European Association of Dermato-Oncology (EADO), European Dermatology Forum (EDF) and EORTC · 2025 · Update 2024, Part 1 (Diagnostics); Part 2 covers treatment
The European interdisciplinary melanoma guideline, published in the European Journal of Cancer and issued in two parts covering diagnostics and treatment. The diagnostics part addresses clinical and dermoscopic assessment, histopathological confirmation, stage-dependent imaging, molecular testing and structured follow-up.
- Developed jointly by EADO, the European Dermatology Forum and the EORTC, and stated to be valid until the end of 2026. source
- Imaging intensity is scaled to tumour stage, with lymph node ultrasound from stage IB and cross-sectional or PET-CT imaging plus brain MRI at higher stages. source
- Mutation testing, particularly for BRAF V600, is recommended from stage IIB/C upward. source
US vs EU key differences
- Baseline staging imaging diverges outright: the AAD guideline recommends against routine radiologic imaging and laboratory studies in asymptomatic newly diagnosed stage 0-II melanoma, whereas the European guideline sets a stage-triggered ladder - no imaging at or below 0.8 mm, lymph node ultrasound from stage IB, and CT or PET-CT plus brain MRI from stage IIB/C. source
- Molecular testing recommendations conflict: the AAD advises against testing the primary tumour for BRAF or NRAS mutations in the absence of metastatic disease, while the European guideline recommends BRAF V600 testing from stage IIB/C upward. source
- The European guideline requires dermoscopic confirmation of a clinical melanoma diagnosis and endorses sequential digital dermoscopy and total-body photography for high-risk surveillance, alongside a stage-based follow-up schedule. source
- Structure and currency differ: the AAD covers biopsy, margins, sentinel node biopsy and follow-up in one 2019 paper (0.5-1 cm margins for melanoma in situ, up to 1 cm at or below 1 mm, up to 2 cm above 1 mm), while the European guideline splits diagnostics and treatment into separate parts with diagnostics refreshed in 2024. source
What changed recently
- EUUpdate 2022 → Update 2024, Part 1 (Diagnostics)2025-01-01
The 2024 diagnostics update to the European melanoma guideline lowered the threshold for whole-body staging: CT or PET-CT combined with brain MRI is now advised from stage IIB/C rather than from stage IIC as in the 2022 version. It also sets out when BRAF V600 mutation testing is indicated and endorses sequential digital dermoscopy, whole-body photography and reflectance confocal microscopy in selected high-risk patients.
source ↗curation confidence 90% - US2011 → 2019 guideline2019-01-01
The 2019 AAD guideline replaced the 2011 version, realigning staging with the updated AJCC system and reworking how biopsy, pathology reporting and sentinel lymph node biopsy findings feed into management. It also revised the use of laboratory, molecular and imaging tests during initial work-up and follow-up of asymptomatic patients.
source ↗curation confidence 90%
See the full update feed for changes across every system.