Melanoma is the most serious form of skin cancer.   However, if it is recognized and treated early, it is nearly 100 percent curable.  But if it is not, the cancer can advance and spread to other parts of the body, where it becomes hard to treat and can be fatal.   While it is not the most common of the skin cancers, it causes the most deaths.  The American Cancer Society estimates that in 2006, there will be over 60,000 new cases of melanoma in the United States.

Melanoma is a malignant tumor that originates in melanocytes, the cells which produce the pigment melanin that colors our skin, hair, and eyes and is heavily concentrated in most moles. The majority of melanomas, therefore, are black or brown. However, melanomas occasionally stop producing pigment. When that happens, the melanomas may no longer be dark, but are skin-colored, pink, red, or purple.

TREATMENT:
When it comes to the early stages of the disease, the future is bright.  Most people with thin, localized melanomas are cured by appropriate surgery.  Early detection still remains the best weapon in fighting skin cancer.
For people with more advanced disease, there is still good news.  The cure rate continues to rise.  Treatments are varied and many; new discoveries are being made to improve the chances of those with metastatic disease.

Surgical Excision: The first step in treatment is the removal of the melanoma, usually by surgical excision (cutting it out).  Most surgical excisions - also called resections - are done in a doctor's office or as an outpatient procedure using local anesthesia.
There is now a trend towards performing a sentinel lymph node biopsy and tumor removal at the same time, provided the tumor is 1mm or more thick.

Example of Melanoma.