Visual Inspection and the US Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation on Skin Cancer Screening

<em>MC1R</em> variants as melanoma risk factors independent of at-risk phenotypic characteristics: a pooled analysis from the M-SKIP project

“… 2 , 12 An accompanying editorial suggested that the Preventive Services Task Force statement should be viewed as an invitation to the scientific communities “to work together in executing well-designed studies … so future recommendations can be of greater public health benefit”. 13 Since melanoma seems to be determined by complex interactions among host characteristics, environmental exposure, and genetic factors, 14 , 15 the inclusion and evaluation of genetic markers in risk models may be warranted and has been considered an important step for further development and testing of prediction tools before they can be used routinely with confidence. 10 …”

Beyond country-specific incidence and mortality: the global burden of melanoma

“…Comparing GBD data between countries may also allow evaluation of potential benefits and harms of an intervention. For example, there is currently debate about whether populations should offer organized programmes of skin checks for melanoma early detection/screening . In the absence of evidence from a large population‐based randomized controlled trial on the effects of melanoma screening, the extent of the potential benefits (excision of melanomas which would otherwise have progressed) and harms (including overdiagnosis of lesions which would never have progressed or shortened life) are uncertain .…”

“…For example, there is currently debate about whether populations should offer organized programmes of skin checks for melanoma early detection/screening. [7][8][9][10][11] In the absence of evidence from a large population-based randomized controlled trial on the effects of melanoma screening, the extent of the potential benefits (excision of melanomas which would otherwise have progressed) and harms (including overdiagnosis of lesions which would never have progressed or shortened life) are uncertain. 7 Melanoma incidence rates have risen in many countries worldwide, 12 which appears to have been largely driven by increased detection of early-stage disease.…”

The first 30 years of the American Academy of Dermatology skin cancer screening program: 1985-2014

“…15 Many professional organizations, such as the American College of Physicians, the American College of Preventive Medicine, the American Academy of Family Physicians, and the American Cancer Society, do not recommend screening for skin cancer. 16–18 Others have raised some of the unintended consequences of screening, namely, the overdiagnosis of melanoma, BCC, and SCC. 18 These experts and others support implementation of risk-based skin cancer screening guidelines similar to those recommended internationally and have called for collaborations with primary care physicians, focusing on those with highest case fatality rates, as well as targeted screening of individuals with the most important phenotypic and genotypic melanoma risk factors.…”