Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2010 Dec 30;3(1):126-63.
doi: 10.3390/cancers3010126.

Decoding melanoma metastasis

William E Damsky  1 , Lara E Rosenbaum, Marcus Bosenberg
Affiliations

Decoding melanoma metastasis

William E Damsky et al. Cancers (Basel). .

Abstract

Metastasis accounts for the vast majority of morbidity and mortality associated with melanoma. Evidence suggests melanoma has a predilection for metastasis to particular organs. Experimental analyses have begun to shed light on the mechanisms regulating melanoma metastasis and organ specificity, but these analyses are complicated by observations of metastatic dormancy and dissemination of melanocytes that are not yet fully malignant. Additionally, tumor extrinsic factors in the microenvironment, both at the site of the primary tumor and the site of metastasis, play important roles in mediating the metastatic process. As metastasis research moves forward, paradigms explaining melanoma metastasis as a step-wise process must also reflect the temporal complexity and heterogeneity in progression of this disease. Genetic drivers of melanoma as well as extrinsic regulators of disease spread, particularly those that mediate metastasis to specific organs, must also be incorporated into newer models of melanoma metastasis.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Origins of Metastatic Melanoma. Melanoma can arise either: (1) within a pre-existing melanocytic nevus (mole), generally associated with BRAFV600E mutation, or (2) with no visible precursor. Melanoma is thought to form within the epidermis, spread to the dermis, and ultimately to disseminate to distant sites (metastatic melanoma). Up to 12% of melanomas do not have an identifiable cutaneous precursor lesion. Progression of any individual lesion is thought to be driven by the acquisition of additional genetic/epigenetic changes.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Steps in Melanoma Metastasis. After formation of a primary tumor, melanoma cells are thought to enter into lymphatic vessels, traverse to the lymph node, and subsequently enter into systemic circulation via the thoracic duct. After reaching systemic circulation, cells must adhere to the microvasculature of a target organ, extravasate, and subsequently proliferate in order to form a clinically relevant metastasis. The mechanisms regulating either success or failure at any step are likely important and probably differ amongst different melanomas and different target organs.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Rigel D.S., Carucci J.A. Malignant melanoma: Prevention, early detection, and treatment in the 21st century. CA Cancer J. Clin. 2000;50:215–236. quiz 237-240. - PubMed
    1. Bedrosian I., Faries M.B., Guerry D.t., Elenitsas R., Schuchter L., Mick R., Spitz F.R., Bucky L.P., Alavi A., Elder D.E., Fraker D.L., Czerniecki B.J. Incidence of sentinel node metastasis in patients with thin primary melanoma (< or = 1 mm) with vertical growth phase. Ann. Surg. Oncol. 2000;7:262–267. - PubMed
    1. Balch C.M., Soong S.J., Gershenwald J.E., Thompson J.F., Reintgen D.S., Cascinelli N., Urist M., McMasters K.M., Ross M.I., Kirkwood J.M., Atkins M.B., Thompson J.A., Coit D.G., Byrd D., Desmond R., Zhang Y., Liu P.Y., Lyman G.H., Morabito A. Prognostic factors analysis of 17,600 melanoma patients: Validation of the American Joint Committee on Cancer melanoma staging system. J. Clin. Oncol. 2001;19:3622–3634. - PubMed
    1. Ko J.M., Fisher D.E. A new era: Melanoma genetics and therapeutics. J. Pathol. 2011;223:241–250. - PubMed
    1. Ernfors P. Cellular origin and developmental mechanisms during the formation of skin melanocytes. Exp. Cell. Res. 2010;316:1397–1407. - PubMed