BACKGROUND Spitz nevi demonstrate a diverse spectrum of morphologies. Recently, there have been two reported examples of Spitz nevi with rosette-like structures similar to Homer-Wright rosettes. Rosettes have also been described in melanomas and in a proliferative nodule arising in a congenital nevus. METHODS A retrospective review of 104 cases of Spitz nevi and variants (n = 51), pigmented s...

OBJECTIVE To investigate whether Spitz nevi with typical histopathological features in older patients demonstrate chromosomal aberrations by 4-color fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). DESIGN Retrospective medical record review, with prospective masked histopathological and cytogenetic analyses. SETTING University-affiliated dermatology and dermatopathology setting. PATIENTS Twenty...

Reelin is an extracellular signaling protein synthesized by Cajal-Retius cells in utero and early after birth, its presence being signaled in adult life too. Reelin acts on its receptors, VLDLR and ApoER2, acting on cytoskeleton, controlling migration and subsequently positioning and stabilizing the cortical neurons. We investigated the reelin presence and its receptors, VLDLR and ApoER2, in me...

Background. Dendritic cells could be involved in immune surveillance of highly immunogenic tumors such as melanoma. Their role in the progression melanocytic nevi to melanoma is however a matter of controversy. Methods. The number of dendritic cells within epidermis, in peritumoral zone, and within the lesion was counted on slides immunohistochemically stained for CD1a, CD1c, DC-LAMP, and DC-SI...

BACKGROUND In vivo confocal microscopy enables skin visualization with a quasihistopathologic resolution. OBJECTIVE We sought to describe confocal features in melanocytic lesions and to evaluate their diagnostic significance for melanoma (MM) identification. METHODS Thirty seven MMs, 49 acquired nevi, and 16 Spitz/Reed nevi, presenting equivocal clinicodermoscopic aspects were investigated ...

Of 66 specimens from benign melanocytic nevi, including common acquired and congenital nevi, Spitz tumors (epithelioid cell nevi), and melanocytic nevi with dysplasia, 57 could be grown in tissue culture. The cultured cells were identified as melanocytes by the presence of premelanosomes and melanosomes. Cells from 28 of 32 nevus cultures grew in an anchorage-independent way in soft agar with a...

We analyze the discriminatory power of k-nearest neighbors, logistic regression, artificial neural networks (ANNs), decision tress, and support vector machines (SVMs) on the task of classifying pigmented skin lesions as common nevi, dysplastic nevi, or melanoma. Three different classification tasks were used as benchmarks: the dichotomous problem of distinguishing common nevi from dysplastic ne...

A variety of treatment options exists for the management of giant congenital nevi. Confusion over appropriate management is compounded because not all giant congenital nevi are pigmented, and malignant potential varies between different types. The present study sought to define factors in the presentation of giant congenital nevi that could provide an algorithm for their management, with respec...

The increase in incidence and mortality of melanoma over the past 30 years has heightened public and physician awareness. It is suggested that the combination of increasing detection pressure and poor specificity of current diagnostic strategies is driving biopsy rates to alarming levels in younger individuals despite a low risk of melanoma. 1 Nevertheless, the number of nevi biopsied in childr...

Background: Recurrent nevus is a melanocytic lesion developing at the site of the removal of a previous benign nevus. While most cases are easily diagnosed with traditional histopathologic criteria, some cases have considerable histopathologic overlap with cases of regressed malignant melanoma. Objective: Clinical and histopathologic findings of recurrent nevi are compared to melanoma with regr...