Lentigo maligna (LM) and lentigo maligna melanoma (LMM) show no laterality preference overall, although neoplasms located on the head/neck show a left-sided laterality, according to a study published in the September issue of SKIN.

Gabrielle Brody, from the University of California, Irvine, School of Medicine, and colleagues conducted a cross-sectional, retrospective study to describe the distribution and invasion patterns of LM and LMM at a single academic center. Three hundred ninety-two cases from 2008 to 2018 were included: 241 LM and 151 LMM.

The researchers found that overall, there was no laterality preference; neoplasms located on the head/neck were the only exception and showed a left-sided laterality. The highest incidence of LM and LMM was on the head/neck, followed by the upper extremities, trunk, and lower extremities. A higher incidence on the head/neck and trunk was seen for men, while for women, incidence on the extremities was higher. The propensity for invasive lesions was higher for the upper extremities and right side of the female body.

"These findings update the current understanding of the anatomical distribution and invasion patterns of LM and LMM and should help increase suspicion of left-sided lesions on the head/neck of the general population, trunk of men, and extremities of women," the authors write.

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