This prospective, single-institution study recruits patients presenting with suspected primary melanoma at the department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Herlev and Gentofte University Hospital, Copenhagen University. Patients with invasive melanoma of stage T3a or higher, or with sentinel node metastasis (N1a or higher), and no distant metastasis (M0) will be selected for final analysis.
Pre-operative blood samples are collected prior to surgical excision. Plasma is harvested and stored. Tumor tissue from excised melanomas is analyzed using next-generation sequencing (NGS, Oncomine Tumor Mutational Load panel) to determine the mutational profile. For patients with targetable mutations, corresponding plasma samples are analyzed for ctDNA using either digital droplet PCR (ddPCR) or plasma NGS depending on the local availability of validated mutation-specific assays.
Enrollment will take place from September 2021 to December 2022, with laboratory analyses expected to be completed in 2025 and final analysis completed by May 2026. This study shares the ethical approval (H-18008586) and biobank infrastructure with a parallel study investigating ctDNA for detection of melanoma recurrence (NCT06246227).
