FROM THE JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF DERMATOLOGY
The number of new cases per year of Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) increased by 95% during 2000-2013, according to a review of Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) data.
There were 652 cases of MCC in the SEER-18 registry in 2013, up from the 334 cases captured by the database in 2000.
This increase exceeded the 56.5% increase seen with melanoma over the same time period, the investigators wrote in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology.
The total number of incident MCC cases in the United States in 2013 was calculated as 2,488 cases/year by using SEER-derived incidence rates combined with U.S. Census population data. The MCC incidence rate rose precipitously with age, increasing 10-fold between ages 40-44 years (0.1 cases/100,000 person-years) and ages 60-64 years (0.9 cases/100,000 person-years).
Given the aging of the population and an assumption that the incidence rates within any given age group will remain stable, the annual incidence of Merkel cell carcinoma in the United States will increase to 3,284 cases/year in 2025, Kelly G. Paulson, MD, PhD, of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, and her colleagues projected.
“The incidence of MCC is increasing and will likely continue to rise as the Baby Boomer population enters the higher-risk age groups for MCC,” Dr. Paulson and colleagues said. ”Because of its high propensity for spread, the need for adjuvant radiation in many cases, and the clear role for early immunotherapy in the metastatic setting, both early detection and optimal management will be critical for improved outcomes,” they concluded.
SOURCE: Paulson KG et al. J Am Acad Derm. 2018 Mar;78(3):457-463.