Melanoma Survival Disparities in Asian American and Pacific Islander Patients

Asian American and Pacific Islander patients with melanoma experience later-stage diagnoses and increased melanoma-specific mortality compared with non-Hispanic White patients, and these disparities remain even after adjusting for stage of diagnosis, according to a poster presented at the 2023 AAD Annual Meeting.

Researchers analyzed all histologically confirmed cases of cutaneous melanoma in Asian American patients (n=1732) and non-Hispanic White patients (n=281 754) in the specialized Asian American and Pacific Islander database of the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results program from 1990 to 2014.

Asian American and Pacific Islander patients had a higher proportion of metastatic melanoma at diagnosis (16.6%, stage III and 11.6%, stage IV) compared with non-Hispanic White patients (6.8%, stage III and 4.4%, stage IV). Asian American and Pacific Islander patients also had significantly increased melanoma-specific mortality compared with non-Hispanic White patients (P<.0001). After adjusting for stage of diagnosis, Asian American and Pacific Islander patients had a 1.29-fold increased risk of melanoma-specific death and significantly increased mortality for stage I (hazard ratio [HR] 1.64; 95% CI: 1.18–2.27; P=.003) and stage III (HR 1.45; 95% CI: 1.18–1.78; P=.0003) melanoma.

Although Asian American and Pacific Islander patients have a lower risk of developing melanoma compared with non-Hispanic White patients, they have worse survival rates following diagnosis. Differences in disease characteristics or care access may contribute to disparities.

“Future research should investigate the underlying factors behind these disparities in order to improve health equity for the [Asian American and Pacific Islander] population,” concluded the poster authors.

Reference

Wei AH, Fane LS, Tripathi R, Bordeaux JS. Disparities in melanoma survival in Asian American and Pacific Islander patients. Poster presented at: AAD Annual Meeting; March 17–21, 2023; New Orleans, LA.