Risk factors of the cutaneous melanoma phenotype.

Of 20 melanoma patients 85% show a prolonged erythema persistence after a marked test erythema of 8 MED with 300 nm +/- 10 nm (control group only 34%). This phenomenon does not correlate with the skin type and is useful in identifying high-risk patients prone to melanoma and light-induced skin cancer (92%). The spontaneous and the UV-C-induced number of sister chromatid exchanges (SCE) per metaphase was significantly higher in peripheral leukocytes of melanoma patients than in normal controls. The attempt was made to establish a "risk-spectrum" of cutaneous melanoma phenotype.