Histopathologic Recognition of Involved Margins of Lentigo Maligna Excised by Staged Excision

Design: Retrospective, randomized interobserver and intraobserver comparison study of archived pathologic specimens. The study was conducted in 3 phases, and slides were evaluated blindly and independently by 5 pathologists: in phase 1, all slides were randomized and diagnosed as positive or negative. In phase 2, every third slide was evaluated again and diagnosed as positive or negative. In phase 3, slides were organized into cases, allowing evaluation of each margin in the context of the positive control (tumor from the center of the lesion) and negative control (control biopsy specimen), if available. Setting: University referral center. Study Material: A total of 301 glass microscopic slides from 27 patients who underwent staged excision for len