Disparities in Malignant Melanoma Diagnosis in American Indian/Alaska Native Versus White Patients

Introduction: Malignant melanoma (MM) is a highly aggressive skin cancer with increasing incidence among American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) individuals, who are more likely to present with advanced disease and have lower survival rates, yet literature on this population remains scarce.Objective: To analyze melanoma disparities in AI/AN individuals, focusing on diagnosis stage, socioeconomic factors, tumor characteristics, and overall survival.Methods: A retrospective cohort study using the National Cancer Database (2004–2021) compared AI/AN (n=459) and White (n=422,615) melanoma patients. Demographic, socioeconomic, and clinical factors were analyzed using chi-square tests, t-tests, and Kaplan-Meier survival analysis (p