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BRAF mutations in cutaneous melanoma are independently associated with age, anatomic site of the primary tumor, and the degree of solar elastosis at the primary tumor site

  1. Jürgen Bauer1,2,†,
  2. Petra Büttner3,†,
  3. Rajmohan Murali4,†,
  4. Ichiro Okamoto5,
  5. Nicholas A. Kolaitis2,
  6. Maria T. Landi6,
  7. Richard A. Scolyer4,
  8. Boris C. Bastian2,7

Article first published online: 10 MAR 2011

DOI: 10.1111/j.1755-148X.2011.00837.x

Issue

Pigment Cell & Melanoma Research

Pigment Cell & Melanoma Research

Volume 24, Issue 2, pages 345–351, April 2011

Additional Information

How to Cite

Bauer, J., Büttner, P., Murali, R., Okamoto, I., Kolaitis, N. A., Landi, M. T., Scolyer, R. A. and Bastian, B. C. (2011), BRAF mutations in cutaneous melanoma are independently associated with age, anatomic site of the primary tumor, and the degree of solar elastosis at the primary tumor site. Pigment Cell & Melanoma Research, 24: 345–351. doi: 10.1111/j.1755-148X.2011.00837.x

Author Information

  1. 1

     Department of Dermatology, Eberhard Karls University, Tübingen, Germany

  2. 2

     Department of Dermatology, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA

  3. 3

     School of Public Health, Tropical Medicine and Rehabilitation Sciences, James Cook University, Townville, Qld, Australia

  4. 4

     Tissue Pathology and Diagnostic Oncology, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Sydney Medical School, The University of Sydney, Melanoma Institute Australia, NSW, Australia

  5. 5

     Department of Dermatology, University of Vienna Medical School, Vienna, Austria

  6. 6

     Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, NIH, Bethesda, MD, USA

  7. 7

     Departments of Dermatology and Pathology and UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA

  1. †

    These authors contributed equally to the work.

*Boris C. Bastian, e-mail: bastianb@mskcc.org

  1. †

    These authors contributed equally to the work.

Publication History

  1. Issue published online: 10 MAR 2011
  2. Article first published online: 10 MAR 2011
  3. Accepted manuscript online: 16 FEB 2011 10:08PM EST
  4. PUBLICATION DATA Received 15 December 2010, revised and accepted for publication 14 February 2011, published online 16 February 2011

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Keywords:

  • BRAF;
  • genetics;
  • melanoma;
  • mutation;
  • pathology;
  • solar elastosis;
  • ultraviolet exposure

Summary

Oncogenic BRAF mutations are more frequent in cutaneous melanoma occurring at sites with little or moderate sun-induced damage than at sites with severe cumulative solar ultraviolet (UV) damage. We studied cutaneous melanomas from geographic regions with different levels of ambient UV radiation to delineate the relative effects of cumulative UV damage, age, and anatomic site on the frequency of BRAF mutations. We show that BRAF-mutated melanomas occur in a younger age group on skin without marked solar elastosis and less frequently affect the head and neck area, compared to melanomas without BRAF mutations. The findings indicate that BRAF-mutated melanomas arise early in life at low cumulative UV doses, whereas melanomas without BRAF mutations require accumulation of high UV doses over time. The effect of anatomic site on the mutation spectrum further suggests regional differences among cutaneous melanocytes.

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