Analysis of melanoma in African American patients in the United States

Background/Aim: To characterize the demographics, tumor staging and treatment of African American (AA) patients diagnosed with melanoma in the United States. Patients and Methods: The National Cancer Database was used to extrapolate data from patients with melanoma between January 1, 2004, and December 31, 2015. The patients were then further divided based on ethnicity (AAs vs. Caucasians) to compare patient efficacy of treatment. Results: The mean time for AA patients to receive treatment was 20.37 days compared with 11.25 days for Caucasians (p<0.001), while time to surgery was 38.86 days compared to 31.12 days for Caucasians (p<0.001). Moreover, AA race was a predictor of American Joint Committee on Cancer stage greater than II, tumor diagnosed at autopsy, presence of ulceration, and distribution in the extremities. Conclusion: AA patients with melanoma are more likely to have worse tumor staging, treatment delay, treatment at an Integrated Cancer Program, and diagnosis at autopsy.