ASO Author Reflections: Cutaneous Melanoma as Model System for the Obesity Paradox in Cancer.

Appreciation of the relationship between obesity and cancer has skyrocketed since the early 2000s. Though obesity is convincingly associated with an increased risk of at least 13 different cancers, the relationship between obesity and cutaneous melanoma remains unclear. Here, we reflect on our research into the relationship between obesity and clinically localized melanoma presented in the accompanying article, “The Impact of Obesity on Surgically Treated Locoregional Melanoma” (in press). The data presented are consistent with an “obesity paradox” in which obesity is linked to thicker melanomas and later stage at presentation without affecting survival. Given the complexity of the relationship with obesity, we propose that cutaneous melanoma is an excellent model system to investigate the role of obesity in different aspects of tumor biology and care, including risk of tumor development, tumor invasion, surgical outcomes, and response to systemic therapy.