Objective:

To assess the clinical consequences and economic effects associated with prevalent cancers identified concurrently with cutaneous melanoma diagnosis.

Approach:

• Study Design: A retrospective, population-based cohort study using data from the Italian Veneto Region Cancer Registry.
• Patient Population: 2,978 melanoma patients were analyzed, with 134 (4.5%) having prevalent tumors diagnosed in the five years prior to melanoma.
• Statistical Analysis: Kaplan–Meier analyses and Cox proportional hazards models evaluated associations of prevalent primary cancers with overall survival and melanoma-specific survival.
• Cost Analysis: Administrative data were used to assess healthcare costs over a three-year period from the health system perspective.

Key Findings:

• Prevalent tumors were associated with older age, male sex, and a higher comorbidity burden.
• Prevalent tumors increased all-cause mortality risk (HR 2.23, 95% CI 1.59–3.15; p<0.001).
• After adjustment, prevalent tumors remained associated with increased all-cause mortality risk (aHR 1.72, 95% CI 1.19–2.47; p=0.004).
• No significant association was found for melanoma-specific mortality.
• Three-year average healthcare costs were higher for patients with prevalent tumors (€30,698.34 vs €17,471.23).

Limitations:

• The study is retrospective and may be subject to selection bias.
• Data is limited to the Veneto Region and may not be generalizable to other populations.