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Managing Melanoma During Pregnancy

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Managing Cancer during Pregnancy

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Abstract

Cutaneous melanoma is one of the most frequently encountered malignancies in pregnant women. Still, the tendency to delay pregnancy to later reproductive age along with the age-dependent increase in the incidence of melanoma are likely to result in higher incidences of gestational melanoma in the next decades. As the diagnosis of melanoma in the course of pregnancy is not an exceptional situation, the provision of treatment raises certain issues that are at once medical, ethical, and philosophical. The management of gestational melanoma poses a significant challenge to surgeons, oncologists, and patients alike. Generalized guidelines may not be applicable or appropriate because of patient variability. In clinical practice, this translates into individualized patient management. In every case, the involvement of a multidisciplinary team with clinical and psychosocial expertise in melanoma therapy is essential.

In this chapter we review the literature and emphasize on issues related to management strategies of the gestational melanoma. Large clinical trials or randomized studies are almost impossible. We critically present available data, based on small series and experts’ opinion, as regarding the role of sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB), and the therapeutic approach of the disease.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medical Oncology, Ioannina University Hospital, Stavros Niarchou Avenue, Ioannina, 45 110, Greece

    Stergios Boussios MD & George Pentheroudakis

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  1. Stergios Boussios MD
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  2. George Pentheroudakis
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Correspondence to Stergios Boussios MD .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medicine, Institut Jules Bordet, Brussels, Belgium

    Hatem A. Azim Jr

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© 2016 Springer International Publishing Switzerland

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Boussios, S., Pentheroudakis, G. (2016). Managing Melanoma During Pregnancy. In: Azim Jr, H. (eds) Managing Cancer during Pregnancy. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28800-0_11

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28800-0_11

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-28798-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-28800-0

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