Abstract
In contrast to other cancer types, melanoma incidence has been increasing over the last 50 years, and while it still represents less than 5% of all cutaneous malignancies, melanoma accounts for the majority of skin cancer deaths, due to its propensity to metastasise. Whilst melanoma most commonly affects the skin, it can also arise in mucosal surfaces, the eye, and the brain. For new therapies to be developed, a better understanding of the genetic landscape, signalling pathways, and tumour–microenvironmental interactions is needed. This is where animal models are of critical importance. The mouse is the foremost used model of human melanoma. Arguably this is due to its plethora of benefits as a laboratory animal; however, it is important to note that unlike humans, melanocytes are not present at the dermal–epidermal junction in mice and mice do not develop melanoma without genetic manipulation. In contrast, there are numerous reports of animals that spontaneously develop melanoma, ranging from sharks and parrots to hippos and monkeys. In addition, several domesticated and laboratory‐bred animals spontaneously develop melanoma or UV‐induced melanoma, specifically, fish, opossums, pigs, horses, cats, and dogs. In this review, we look at spontaneously occurring animal ‘models’ of melanoma and discuss their relevance to the different types of melanoma found in humans. © 2020 The Authors. The Journal of Pathology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland..
Highlights
Melanoma is a tumour that arises from uncontrolled proliferation of melanocytes
We look at spontaneously occurring animal ‘models’ of melanoma and discuss their relevance to the different types of melanoma found in humans
All subtypes of melanomas are derived from melanocytes and share the same embryonic origin and cellular function, the etiopathogenesis and biological behaviour of these melanoma subtypes are very different with distinct landscapes of genetic alterations and different metastatic routes
Summary
Melanoma is a tumour that arises from uncontrolled proliferation of melanocytes (pigment-producing cells). The most common form of melanoma is cutaneous, it can 11 arise from melanocytes in the mucosal surfaces (mucosal melanoma), the eye (ocular melanoma), and leptomeninges (leptomeningeal melanoma). The current 4th edition of the World Health Organization (WHO) classification of skin tumours separates melanocytic tumours according to sun-exposure: melanoma arising in intermittently sun-exposed skin, melanoma arising in chronically sun-exposed skin and melanoma arising on sun-protected skin [1]. Chronic and intermittent ultraviolet (UV) light exposures are a major cause of melanoma development in sun-exposed skin, and UV-induced melanoma is the most common type of melanoma in pale/fair skin types (people of European descent), typically occurring at 30-60 years of age Melanomas on chronically sun-exposed skin are typically of the lentigo maligna or desmoplastic variants, while melanoma on intermittently sun-exposed. Other rare subtypes of melanoma that arise independent of UV light exposure are Spitz melanoma, melanoma arising in blue naevi and melanoma arising in congenital naevi
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
