Patterns of recurrence and retreatment outcomes among clinical stage I and II head and neck melanoma patients

Background The objective of this study was to determine survival outcomes in patients who underwent retreatment of recurrent cases of cutaneous melanoma of the head and neck (CMHN). Methods Retrospective review of all patients who were treated for primary clinical stage I or II CMHN between January 1, 2000 and December 31, 2015. Results Twenty percent (33/168) of the patients developed a recurrence. Sixty‐six percent (4/6) of patients who developed local recurrence first and 50% (3/6) of patients who developed regional recurrence first were alive without evidence (NED) of disease at last follow‐up, while 0% (0/21) of patients who developed distant or simultaneous recurrences first were NED at last follow‐up. Among the 7 patients who were NED, the mean time from recurrence to last follow‐up was 735 days. Conclusions Of patients with isolated local or regional recurrences, 58% (7/12) obtained durable curative treatment for recurrent melanoma.