Melanoma rise shows pattern

New York - The incidence of melanoma occurring on the head continues to rise, even as overall melanoma rates are leveling, researchers in Finland report.

Melanoma rates rose sharply from the early 1950s through the late 1980s, then leveled off for all sites except the head. Investigators suggest that melanoma of the head area may have a different cause than melanoma occurring elsewhere, according to the International Journal of Cancer.