Although the majority of melanomas can be distinguished from benign nevi on the basis of histologic criteria, a significant subset of melanocytic proliferations present conflicting features that preclude a definitive diagnosis for even the most expert pathologists. An unacceptably high number of lesions cannot be precisely and reproducibly classified as either entirely benign or malignant by ro...

The early diagnosis of melanoma is critical to achieving reduced mortality and increased survival. Although clinical examination is currently the method of choice for melanocytic lesion assessment, there is a growing interest among clinicians regarding the potential diagnostic utility of computerised image analysis. Recognising that there exist significant shortcomings in currently available al...

Historically, melanoma has been typically diagnosed by naked-eye examination and confirmed with invasive biopsy. However, recently the use of reflectance confocal microscopy enables non-invasive bedside diagnosis of clinically equivocal lesions. We present a case in which reflectance confocal microscopy was used to evaluate two skin lesions in the same patient confirming the diagnosis of a mela...

Although the majority of melanomas can be distinguished from benign nevi on the basis of histologic criteria, a significant subset of melanocytic proliferations present conflicting features that preclude a definitive diagnosis for even the most expert pathologists. An unacceptably high number of lesions cannot be precisely and reproducibly classified as either entirely benign or malignant by ro...

Macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) is a widely expressed cytokine involved in various biological processes. Although MIF's functions in cancer have not been completely elucidated, its expression has usually been correlated with tumour progression and aggressiveness, and it is currently discussed as a new promising target for novel therapies. Recent studies seem to confirm its active r...

Dear Editor-in-ChiefMalignant melanoma is a tumor arising from melanocyte; this tumor rarely occurs before puberty, with higher mortality rate in males and better survival rate in female patients affected by metastatic melanoma (1, 2). These facts propose that a relationship and association may exist between estrogens and melanoma. The effects of estrogens are mediated by...

Recurrent melanocytic nevus is a proliferation of melanocytes arising from a melanocytic nevus removed partially. Asymmetry and irregular pigmentation may lead to misdiagnosis of melanoma. We report a patient presented with a lesion on the lower abdomen, which was removed by shave excision. Anatomopathological examination revealed an intradermal melanocytic nevus. Two months later, a new irregu...

Objective(s) Human papillomavirus (HPV) infections are related to the genesis of various benign lesions and some malignant tumors, but no clear relationship has been identified so far between the subtypes of HPV and skin tag. Materials and Methods The present case-control study was designed to detect the existence of low risk and high risk HPV types in lesions of 50 patients with skin tag (c...

We report a case of halo-phenomenon in excisional biopsy of junctional nevi in a 19-year-old girl. The diagnosis was established histopathologically because of the lack of clinical halo and unspecific dermoscopic features. Clinicopathologic difficulties in establishing the diagnosis of these pigmented lesions, etiopathogenesis and differential diagnosis of halo nevi are emphasized. Dermatologis...

Myeloid leukemia-1 (Mcl-1) is an anti-apoptotic protein implicated in tumor progression. Its expression was found to be elevated in many types of human cancers and is correlated with tumor progression. The expression of Mcl-1 in melanoma is not fully understood. We investigated the expression of Mcl-1 in normal nevi, dysplastic nevi, primary melanoma and melanoma metastases by tissue microarray...