Pediatric Transplant Dermatology

Abstract

Melanoma represents only a minority of all skin cancers but is responsible for most skin cancer deaths. The incidence of melanoma has been rapidly increasing in the past decades. Unfortunately, similar to other cutaneous malignancies, antirejection immunosuppressive therapy increases the risk of melanoma in organ transplant recipients (OTRs). The incidence of primary melanoma is elevated close to 3-fold in OTRs. There is also a documented increase in the likelihood of recurrence of a prior primary melanoma in OTRs, and melanoma mortality is also increased compared with that of no-immunosuppressed patients. In this chapter, we will provide an overview of melanoma in OTRs focusing on primary melanoma, melanoma recurrence, and graft-derived melanoma. Furthermore, we will also review the current literature on reducing melanoma mortality risk and on melanoma therapy in OTRs.