Elective treatment of regional lymph nodes in malignant melanoma.

Malignant melanoma of Clark level II to V was studied in 96 patients. An elective dissection or elective irradiation of the regional lymph nodes was performed in 45 patients, whereas 51 patients were not treated electively. No statistically significant differences were observed as to the survival or recurrence-free time in the regional lymph nodes in either of these two patient groups. Between the patient groups with or without selective treatment, there was not any significant difference either, even when the prognosis and recurrence of the patients were correlated to the invasion level of the primary melanoma according to Clark or Breslow.