LAUSR

BACKGROUND Timely treatment for melanoma may affect survival and characterizing predictors of delay may inform intervention strategies. OBJECTIVE To determine characteristics associated with surgical interval in melanoma. METHODS The National Cancer Database was used to examine factors associated with the interval between diagnosis and surgery among 213,146 patients with Stage I, II, or III cutaneous melanoma. RESULTS Among privately insured patients, time to surgery was longer for patients aged 50 to 70 (Hazard Ratio [HR] 0.96) and over age 70 (HR 0.83), compared with those under age 50. Contrastingly, patients without private insurance experienced a shorter surgical wait time if older (HR 1.07 age 50 to 70; HR 1.05 over age 70). Other factors associated with longer surgical interval included non-white race, less education, higher comorbidity burden, advanced stage, and head or neck melanoma location. LIMITATIONS Use of zip-code level data for income and education level. CONCLUSION Melanoma patients experience disparities in timely receipt of surgery.