Acral Lentiginous Melanoma in situ / 대한피부과학회지

ABSTRACT

Acral lentiginous melanoma (ALM) is the most common subtype of melanoma in Asian countries including Korea. ALM was considered more aggressive than other subtypes, but recent reports suggest that it was because of late detection or delayed diagnosis, rather than a true biological difference. Therefore, early diagnosis of ALM is important for a better prognosis but its diagnosis is not always easy. There are scarce reports upon ALM in situ, probably due to its rarity and diagnostic difficulty, which makes in depth understanding and proper management of ALM in situ complicated. Therefore, we have reviewed our experience for twenty years with acral pigmented lesions showing intraepidermal proliferation of melanocytes which was diagnosed or suspected as ALM in situ.