Head and Neck Melanoma: An Overview

Melanoma is one of the most common cancers in the United States, and its incidence has been steadily rising. Despite the increasing incidence, 5-year survival rates are over 90%, in large part due to early detection and advances in treatment. Head and neck melanomas encompass up to a quarter of all melanomas despite the head and neck making up only 9% of total body surface area. Although under the overall classification of melanoma, head and neck melanomas are distinct in many ways that influence their management. In this review, we provide current concepts in the risk factors, genetics, classifications, diagnosis, surgical and nonsurgical management, and future therapies of head and neck melanoma. This review contains 26 figures, 9 tables and 123 references Key words: Checkpoint inhibition therapy; Head and neck melanoma; Imiquimod; NF1; Oncogene-targeted therapy; Parotid-sparing sentinel lymph node biopsy; RAC1; Selective neck dissection