Patterns of care and follow-up care of patients with uveal melanoma in German-speaking countries: a multinational survey of the German Dermatologic Cooperative Oncology Group (DeCOG)
Creators: name: Steeb, Theresa
name: Wessely, Anja
name: Alter, Mareike
name: Bayerl, Christiane
name: Bender, Armin
name: Bruning, Guido
name: Dabrowski, Evelyn
name: Debus, Dirk
name: Devereux, Nina
name: Dippel, Edgar
name: Drexler, Konstantin
name: Dücker, Pia
name: Dummer, Reinhard
name: Emmert, Steffen
name: Elsner, Peter
name: Enk, Alexander
name: Gebhardt, Christoffer
name: Gesierich, Anja
name: Goebeler, Matthias
name: Goerdt, Sergij
name: Goetze, Steven
name: Gutzmer, Ralf
name: Haferkamp, Sebastian
name: Hansel, Gesina
name: Hassel, Jessica C.
name: Heinzerling, Lucie
name: Kähler, Katharina C.
name: Kaume, Kjell M.
name: Krapf, Wolfgang
name: Kreuzberg, Nicole
name: Lehmann, Percy
name: Livingstone, Elisabeth
name: Löffler, Harald
name: Loquai, Carmen
name: Mauch, Cornelia
name: Mangana, Johanna
name: Meier, Friedegund
name: Meissner, Markus
name: Moritz, Rose K. C.
name: Maul, Lara Valeska
name: Müller, Verena
name: Mohr, Peter
name: Navarini, Alexander
name: Van Nguyen, Ahn
name: Pfeiffer, Christiane
name: Pföhler, Claudia
name: Posch, Christian
name: Richtig, Erika
name: Rompel, Rainer
name: Sachse, Michael M.
name: Sauder, Stefanie
name: Schadendorf, Dirk
name: Schatton, Kerstin
name: Schulze, Hans-Joachim
name: Schultz, Erwin
name: Schilling, Bastian
name: Schmuth, Matthias
name: Simon, Jan. C.
name: Streit, Markus
name: Terheyden, Patrick
name: Thiem, Alexander
name: Tüting, Thomas
name: Welzel, Julia
name: Weyandt, Gerhard
name: Wesselmann, Ulrich
name: Wollina, Uwe
name: Ziemer, Mirjana
name: Zimmer, Lisa
name: Zutt, Markus
name: Berking, Carola
name: Schlaak, Max
name: Heppt, Markus V.
Publisher: name: Universität Regensburg
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: GUIDELINES; DIAGNOSIS; Uveal melanoma; Patterns of care; Cross-sectional study; Ocular melanoma; Surveillance; Follow-up; Treatment patterns; Background
subject: 610 Medizin

description: Purpose Uveal melanoma (UM) is an orphan cancer of high unmet medical need. Current patterns of care and surveillance remain unclear as they are situated in an interdisciplinary setting. Methods A questionnaire addressing the patterns of care and surveillance in the management of patients with uveal melanoma was distributed to 70 skin cancer centers in Austria, Germany and Switzerland. Frequency distributions of responses for each item of the questionnaire were calculated. Results 44 of 70 (62.9%) skin cancer centers completed the questionnaire. Thirty-nine hospitals were located in Germany (88.6%), three in Switzerland (6.8%) and two in Austria (4.5%). The majority (68.2%) represented university hospitals. Most patients with metastatic disease were treated in certified skin cancer centers (70.7%, 29/41). Besides, the majority of patients with UM were referred to the respective skin cancer center by ophthalmologists (87.2%, 34/39). Treatment and organization of follow-up of patients varied across the different centers. 35.1% (14/37) of the centers stated to not perform any screening measures. Conclusion Treatment patterns of patients with uveal melanoma in Germany, Austria and Switzerland remain extremely heterogeneous. A guideline for the treatment and surveillance is urgently needed.