Chinese Medical E-ournals Database

Chinese Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology and Pediatrics(Electronic Edition) ›› 2022, Vol. 18 ›› Issue (06): 621 -626. doi: 10.3877/cma.j.issn.1673-5250.2022.06.001

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Research progress on diagnosis and therapy for vaginal melanoma

Xiaofang Zhang, Ping Wang()   

  1. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Key Laboratory of Birth Defects and Related Diseases of Women and Children (Sichuan University), Ministry of Education, West China Second University Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, Sichuan Province, China
  • Received:2022-03-11 Revised:2022-08-15 Published:2022-12-01
  • Corresponding author: Ping Wang
  • Supported by:
    Key Research and Development Project of Science and Technology Department in Sichuan Province(2021YFS0015)

Vaginal melanoma (VM) is a rare malignant tumor with poor prognosis, accounting for around 3% of all vaginal malignancies, and usually occur in older women. VM has a poorer 5-year overall survival (OS) rate than cutaneous, ocular, and vulvar melanoma, with 5-year OS rate of 13%-32.3%. Consensus on staging system or treatment regimen for patients with VM has yet to be established. Surgical excision is the preferred treatment for patients with early-stage VM, and postoperative adjuvant therapy such as radiotherapy, chemotherapy and cytokine therapy may improve their OS rate. Immunotherapy and targeted therapy may be promising approaches for treating patients with advanced VM. However, their curative effects still need further evaluation with solid evidence by large samples, prospective randomized controlled trials of patients with VM. This article reviews the latest research progresses of pathogenesis of VM, clinical manifestations and clinical stage of patients with VM, treatment and prognosis of patients with VM, especially for immunotherapy and targeted therapy.

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