Cutaneous Malignant Melanoma (CMM) incidence has been rising around the world and over the last three decades at rates greater than for any other malignancy. Our objective was to describe geographic trends in incidence and mortality of CMM in Russia between 2001 and 2017 using geo-informatics technique (mapping) and descriptive statistical analysis. Additionally, we aimed to study the associations between ethnicity, geographic latitude/longitude and CMM incidence/mortality rates. We retrospectively analyzed the data from the Moscow Oncology Research Institute, Ministry of Health of Russian Federation for the period of the study. International Classification of Diseases (ICD) C43 code (comprising C43.0-C.43.9) was used to identify cutaneous melanoma cases. Routine methods of descriptive epidemiology were used to study incidence and mortality rates by age groups, years, and jurisdictions (i.e., Federal Districts and Federal Subjects of Russia). In total 141,597 patients were diagnosed with melanoma in Russia over the period 2001-2017, of which 62% were women (p<0.001). The overall age-standardized incidence and mortality rates were 4.27/100,000 and 1.62/ 100,000, respectively. Geographic mapping revealed North-to-South and East-to-West gradients across the country. Intrinsic patient characteristics such as the skin phenotype and the climate zones of the country could be an important risk factors for melanoma development. This study, for the first time, reports the burden and geographic distribution of CMM in Russia and the trends correlate with observations in countries with similar geography.

Treatment adherence can be impacted by several factors, including route of administration, dosing schedule, and pt perceptions. This study assessed pt-reported adherence and associated barriers in pts with melanoma treated with adjuvant therapy. Adult pts with resected stage 3/4 melanoma with no evidence of disease were recruited by a pt panel and the Melanoma Research Foundation to participate in an online survey. Pts were required to have received adjuvant therapy with nivolumab or pembrolizumab (intravenous [IV] cohort) or dabrafenib+trametinib (oral cohort). Adherence was estimated using self-reported overall number of infusions missed for the IV cohort and self-reported adherence level in the past 2 months for the oral cohort. Of 184 eligible pts (127 IV, 57 oral), mean age was 45 years, 44% were female, and 78% were white. Most pts were engaged in treatment decision-making (86%) and considered their well-being to be "good" (46%), "very good" (26%), or "excellent" (9%). Compared with the oral cohort, more pts in the IV cohort were employed full time (67% vs 47%; P¼0.012) and had commercial insurance (76% vs 47%; P<0.001). Mean time on the current adjuvant treatment was similar between the IV (8.3 months) and oral (7.7 months) cohorts. Adherence was relatively high, with pts following their regimens always (81% IV, 58% oral; P¼0.002) or almost all of the time (17% IV, 33% oral; P¼0.002). Nonadherence behavior was lower in the IV cohort than in the oral cohort (19% vs 42%; P<0.001), with forgetfulness (54% vs 46%), affordability (0% vs 46%; P<0.001), and safety concerns (29% vs 42%) listed as common reasons for nonadherence. Many pts did not expect to follow future regimens as instructed (37% IV, 46% oral), primarily due to affordability and safety concerns, which were similar in both cohorts. This study found that pt-reported adherence to adjuvant therapy was relatively high among those with advanced resectable melanoma but also presented potential areas for further improvement.

Cutaneous Malignant Melanoma (CMM) incidence has been rising around the world and over the last three decades at rates greater than for any other malignancy. Our objective was to describe geographic trends in incidence and mortality of CMM in Russia between 2001 and 2017 using geo-informatics technique (mapping) and descriptive statistical analysis. Additionally, we aimed to study the associations between ethnicity, geographic latitude/longitude and CMM incidence/mortality rates. We retrospectively analyzed the data from the Moscow Oncology Research Institute, Ministry of Health of Russian Federation for the period of the study. International Classification of Diseases (ICD) C43 code (comprising C43.0-C.43.9) was used to identify cutaneous melanoma cases. Routine methods of descriptive epidemiology were used to study incidence and mortality rates by age groups, years, and jurisdictions (i.e., Federal Districts and Federal Subjects of Russia). In total 141,597 patients were diagnosed with melanoma in Russia over the period 2001-2017, of which 62% were women (p<0.001). The overall age-standardized incidence and mortality rates were 4.27/100,000 and 1.62/ 100,000, respectively. Geographic mapping revealed North-to-South and East-to-West gradients across the country. Intrinsic patient characteristics such as the skin phenotype and the climate zones of the country could be an important risk factors for melanoma development. This study, for the first time, reports the burden and geographic distribution of CMM in Russia and the trends correlate with observations in countries with similar geography.