The Impact of Stress on the Clinical Presentation of Melanoma

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Abstract
The impact of major life events on the clinical presentation of melanoma was determined in a retrospective case-control analysis. There was a significantly higher occurrence of divorce or marital separation and a significantly higher occurrence of bankruptcy or unemployment in the 5 years prior to the clinical presentation of 56 melanoma patients relative to an age- and sex-matched control group of 56 general surgical patients (p < 0.01). There was also a higher occurrence of death of a spouse or immediate family member, although this difference was not statistically significant. Overall, 26 (46 percent) of the melanoma patients had major life crises in the 5 years prior to clinical presentation, and this was highly significant (p < 0.01). We believe that major life stress has an impact on the clinical presentation of melanoma. Potential reasons for this difference are reviewed.

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