ABSTRACT
Malignant melanoma (MM) incidence rate is increasing faster than many other cancer at present time. Its epidemiological and clinical behavoir varies within countries. We have studied 113 cases of cutaneous melanoma from 1982-1993, that represents until now the largest series of MM studied in Chile. Superficial Spreading Melanoma was the most common type of MM with 37.5 percent of total cases followed by Nodular Melanoma 31.2 percent, Acral Melanoma 22.1 percent and Lentigo Malignant Melanoma with 7.8 percent. MM favored females with 60.2 percent (n=68) and males constituted 39.8 percent (n=45) of all cases. Median age at diagnosis was 54 years. Primary more frequent location for man was thorax (36.4 percent) and lower extremities for women (28.6 percent). Hemorrhage, ulceration and rapid growth of a previously pigmented lesion as the primary cause for first medical visit were associated with high level of invasion, generally over 2 mm. thick. Color change and pruritus were associated with lower level of invasion. Patients in stage I (78.3 percent) had 1.35 mm of median invasive thickness in the primary lesion and patients in stage II (15.7 percent) had 3.03 mm