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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Med.
Sec. Dermatology
Volume 11 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fmed.2024.1436078

Preoperative bimodal imaging evaluation in finding histological correlations of in situ, superficial spreading and nodular melanoma

Provisionally accepted
Mircea Negrutiu Mircea Negrutiu 1Sorina Danescu Sorina Danescu 1*Theodor Popa Theodor Popa 1Liliana Rogojan Liliana Rogojan 2Stefan C. Vesa Stefan C. Vesa 1Adrian Baican Adrian Baican 1
  • 1 University of Medicine and Pharmacy Iuliu Hatieganu, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
  • 2 County Emergency Hospital Cluj-Napoca, Cluj-Napoca, Cluj, Romania

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Background: The aim of this study is to correlate the diagnostic criteria described in dermoscopy, ultrasonography (US), and histology of the most common types of cutaneous melanoma (CM). Methods: We conducted a prospective study including 40 CM cases, which were analysed by dermoscopy using the Delta 30 dermatoscope and Vidix 4.0 videodermoscope, by ultrasound (US) using a high-resolution 20MHz linear probe, along with histopathological analysis. Results: The study involved 40 patients with histopathologically confirmed CM, comprising 10 nodular melanomas (NM), 21 superficial spreading melanomas (SSM), and 9 in situ melanomas (MIS). US measurements of tumour thickness exhibited strong correlations with the histopathological Breslow index (BI), particularly in the NM and SSM groups. A notable correlation was observed between the presence of ulceration in histopathology and ultrasonography. Dermoscopic analysis revealed significant associations between specific features and CM types. For instance, the presence of an atypical network, irregular globules, irregular dots, prominent skin margins, angulated lines/polygons, dotted and short linear vessels, and negative network correlated with a median BI <= 0.5 mm. Conversely, the presence of blue-white veil, atypical vessels, blue-black color, and milky red color were associated with a median BI >= 2.3 mm. Furthermore, regression observed in histopathology correlated with regression identified in dermoscopy We also found statistical correlations between the presence of vascularization at US with the high Clark level, and the presence of prominent skin markings at dermoscopy. The presence of histopathological regression was more frequently associated with tumors that had precise margins, absent vascularization and with those that did not have ulceration on US. The high mitotic rate was associated with tumors that presented imprecise margins, increased vascularization and US detectable ulceration. Conclusion: Innovative CM diagnosis using non-invasive methods like dermoscopy and ultrasound may enhance accuracy and treatment guidance by assessing lesion characteristics.

    Keywords: Dermoscopy, Melanoma, diagnosis, imaging melanoma, imaging, ultrasound, diagnosis  Why was the study undertaken?

    Received: 21 May 2024; Accepted: 30 Jul 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Negrutiu, Danescu, Popa, Rogojan, Vesa and Baican. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Sorina Danescu, University of Medicine and Pharmacy Iuliu Hatieganu, Cluj-Napoca, Romania

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.