Malignant melanoma: an update on treatments.

Melanoma is the malignant tumor deriving from melanocytes through malignant transformation. Melanocytes originate at the neuro-ectodermal crest (the tissue matrix for the brain and medullary spine). These cells migrate during the early fetal period into the skin and settle within the epidermis, becoming part of the skin structure. Melanocytes differ from the other skin cells however; they have a neuro-ectodermal origin, the potential of migrating, and the functional capacity of nerve cell units.