PERFIL EPIDEMIOLÓGICO DE PACIENTES COM MELANOMA CUTÂNEO EM UMA CIDADE DO SUL DE SANTA CATARINA.

Cutaneous malignant melanoma (CMM) is a skin neoplasm with increasing incidence in the recent decades, and Santa Catarina is the state with the highest incidence in the entire country. Objective: To evaluate the location, size and depth of CMM lesions in a pathology reference laboratory in southern Santa Catarina between 2007 and 2017. Methodology: A retrospective cross-sectional documentary study was carried out, consisting of the anatomopathological reports of patients whose skin biopsies were sent to the laboratory studied in the period between 2007 and 2017. Patients whose report confirmed the diagnosis of cutaneous malignant melanoma in the period between 2007 and 2017 were included. Results: We analyzed 232 cases of CCM. The highest prevalence occurred in the 50 to 69 age group. There was a linear increase in the number of occurrences in the period studied. A statistically significant association was found between the Breslow index, the presence of ulceration and the number of tumor mitoses (p<0.001). Conclusion: The data found showed a significant association between the Breslow index, the presence of ulceration and the number of tumor mitoses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]