Malignant melanoma in Chile: different site distribution between private and state patients

Background The body site location of primary Malignant Melanoma (MM) has been correlated with prognosis and survival. Ethnic, genetics, sun exposure factors are related to the anatomical distribution of MM. Low and high socioeconomic strata in Chile differ in ethnic, genetic and cultural conditions. The purpose of this study was to analyze the anatomical MM distribution in the Chilean population in both strata searching for differences due to their ethno-genetic-cultural differences. Records of 1148 MM, 575cases from state hospitals (Low Socioeconomic Strata, LSS) and 573 cases from private clinics (High Socioeconomic Strata, HSS) were analyzed by body site.