Incidence and vital status following initial treatment of uveal melanoma in Florida

Primary uveal melanoma is the second most common type of melanoma in the US. The purpose of this study is to describe, using recent Florida Cancer Data System (FCDS) data, the demographic characteristics and vital status (alive status) at first follow-up after initial treatment, and to describe the annual incidence of primary uveal melanoma, in Florida, from 1995-2002. International Classification of Diseases for Oncology (Third edition) codes were used to cross-reference melanoma morphology with choroid and ciliary body topography (comprising the uvea), for all FCDS confirmed cases of primary uveal melanoma in Florida, from 1995-2002. Demographic characteristics and vital status at last hospital visit following initial treatment were analyzed. Annual uveal melanoma incidence was calculated using Florida population census data. From 1995-2002, 1,189 cases of primary uveal melanoma were diagnosed in Florida. When comparing those initially treated with radiotherapy (n=835) or surgery (n=275), the former had a significantly higher vital status at first follow-up after treatment (94.1% vs. 81.8%, p<.001). Annual incident cases per million increased each year from 1995 (6.62) to 2002 (11.93), except in 1999 and 2001. The mean annual incidence for the study period was 9.5 per million, indicating a significant increase from previous studies utilizing data from 1981-1993 (5.8 per million). Our findings may reflect improved data reporting, represent an actual increase in incidence, or support the potential association of uveal melanoma with sun exposure.