Invisible to the naked eye, an in situ micro-melanoma has been identified on the cheek of a sixty-year-old woman.
- A micro-melanoma in situ, measuring 0.65 millimeters, was detected on the cheek of a 61-year-old patient.
- To identify it, dermatologists resorted to dermoscopy.
- This technique makes it possible to visualize a skin lesion in depth thanks to an illuminating magnifying glass.
In the United States, dermatologists have discovered the smallest tumor not extending beyond the epidermis. Last year, a 61-year-old woman presented for a skin examination. She had no history of skin cancer. However, physical examination revealed a tiny hyperpigmented spot on her cheek. The doctors decided to carry out a dermoscopy, a technique which consists of using an illuminating magnifying glass to visualize a skin lesion in depth.
This examination reveals “sun-damaged skin with a dark brown macule and asymmetric hyperpigmentation. Microscopy revealed the presence of dendritic (i.e. immune system) cells concentrated around a single hair follicle”, can we read in a report published in the journal Practical & Conceptual Dermatology.
The melanoma measured 0.65 millimeters
According to the results, it was a micro-melanoma in situ, a tumor that presents exclusively on the upper layer of the skin. The latter measured 0.65 millimeters. According to the specialists who treated the sexagenarian, micro-melanomas are more and more often reported, “which renders screening methods such as the acronym ABCDE (Asymmetry, Edge, Color, Diameter, Scalability) obsolete”. They believe that it is therefore necessary to understand how to use the various diagnostic tools to optimize the detection of melanoma at its earliest stage and thus to treat it as soon as possible.
Skin cancer: dermoscopy to examine all suspicious spots
The widespread adoption of dermoscopy has made it possible to identify an increasing number of micro-melanomas. Based on dermoscopy alone, the smallest recorded melanoma measured 1.3mm and another case enhanced by body imaging system reported a melanoma 0.9mm in diameter. “Our team evaluated 86 melanomas less than 5mm in diameter and found that 44% of them were invasive melanomas, underscoring the importance of examining suspicious lesions regardless of size,” wrote the dermatologists.