Surgery for abdominal metastases of cutaneous melanoma

The objective of this study was to support our hypothesis that surgical res ection of abdominal metastases of melanoma, regardless of symptomatology, c ould provide prolonged palliation and improved survival. We performed a ret rospective chart review at M,D, Anderson Cancer Center. A series of 251 mel anoma patients (stages I, II, or III at registration) who developed intraab dominal metastases during follow-up were studied. Altogether, 96 patients u nderwent 119 laparotomies; 51 underwent endoscopic or percutaneous procedur es; and 116 patients were treated medically. Surgery was associated with a median survival of 11 months, significantly longer than that with other tre atment (p < 0.001), Tumor was extirpated during 37% of the first laparotomi es, and in an additional 33% very good palliation was achieved with incompl ete resection, Tumor extirpation was associated with 10-month symptom-free survival (SFS), significantly longer than that with any other approach (p < 0.0001). In the nonsurgically treated patients, good palliation was achiev ed in 8% to 17% of patients with no complete response. The median SFS after surgery was 5 months, but 23% of patients were symptom-free more than 12 m onths; 87 patients with minimal symptoms; and 72 severely symptomatic patie nts underwent surgery. Complete resection was feasible in 42% and 34%, resp ectively. Surgery was associated with 12 months median survival in both gro ups. There was a significant survival benefit from surgery in patients with gastrointestinal (GI) tract metastases in contrast to those who had non-GI metastases. For the 96 surgically treated patients, a time interval of mor e than 4 years between diagnosis of the primary lesion and the abdominal re currence predicted decreased risk of death (p = 0.038). The 30-day postoper ative complication and mortality rates were 19.0% and 3.3%, respectively. C omplete surgical resection of melanoma metastases in the abdomen is associa ted with median and symptom-free survival benefits. Symptomatic and asympto matic patients benefit equally, especially if abdominal metastases appear m ore than 4 years after the initial diagnosis and do not involve non-GI visc era, Less than complete resection can provide durable palliation.