Abstract
Objective: To assess the burden of regional environmental factors influencing the incidence of Melanoma in the Italian population and overcome the problem of partial population coverage by local cancer registries and thematic archives. Methods: We analyzed the Italian national hospitalization records from 2001 to 2008 provided by the Ministry of Health, excluding hospital re-admissions of the same patients, in order to assess the occurrence of Melanoma over a 8-year period. Data were presented by age groups (absolute number of cases from 20 to ≥80 years old) and per Region (rates per 100,000 inhabitants) for each year. Results: The overall number of new hospitalizations due to malignant Melanoma increased by 16.8% from 2001 (n = 4846) to 2008 (n = 5823), with the rate per 100,000 inhabitants passing from 10.5 to almost 12.0 at a national level. The majority of new diagnoses of malignant Melanoma was observed in two age groups: 61–70 years old (from 979 in 2001 up to 1209 in 2008, corresponding to 15.1 and 18.1 new cases per 100,000 inhabitants, respectively) and 71–80 years old (from 954 in 2001 up to 1141 in 2008, corresponding to 19.5 and 21.8 new cases per 100,000 inhabitants, respectively). The number of hospitalizations due to Melanoma increased in all age groups with the only exception of the youngest patients aged 20–30 years old. The highest increases over the 8-year period were observed in people aged ≥81 years old (+34%), 61–70 years old (+20%) and surprisingly in the age group 31–40 years old (+17%). Southern Regions showed lower hospitalization rates compared to Northern Italy and Region Lazio. The highest increases between 2001 and 2008 were observed in Trentino/Alto Adige, Friuli Venezia Giulia, Valla d’Aosta and Veneto Region. Conclusions: Hospitalizations due to malignant Melanoma in Italy seem to be influenced by environmental or population-related factors showing a decreasing incidence rate from the Northern to Southern Regions.
Highlights
Cutaneous malignant Melanoma (CMM) is a potentially lethal form of skin cancer
Information concerning all hospitalizations occurring in Italian public and private care setting are registered in hospital discharge records (HDR), which are collected in the Italian Ministry of Health national hospitalization database (SDO)
These information are anonymous and include: region and hospital where the patients have been hospitalized, type of hospitalization, region and province where the patient come from, local health authority (ASL) who is paying for the hospitalization costs, patient’s age, gender, main diagnosis, secondary diagnoses, procedures performed, diagnosis related group (DRG) and length of the hospitalization
Summary
Cutaneous malignant Melanoma (CMM) is a potentially lethal form of skin cancer. It accounts for only 3% to 5% of all skin cancers, it is responsible for approximately 75 percent of all skin cancer deaths [1]. CMM results from the malignant transformation of melanocytes, which are the pigment-producing cells responsible for the color of skin. The key triggers leading to malignant transformation of melanocytes have yet to be fully elucidated, but are known to be multifactorial and include UV radiation damage and genetic susceptibility. 85,000 people globally in 2008 [2] and is in general confined to economically developed countries. There is a high incidence in countries with fair-skinned populations, such as Northern
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