Melanoma accounts for the majority of deaths resulting from skin cancer. It is an aggressive malignancy of the pigment-producing melanocytes. The “ugly duckling” sign characterizes a lesion that appears to be an outlier in the presence of similar-appearing moles. The ABCDE rule is a guide to identify the typical signs of melanoma:
A) asymmetry in shape – one half unlike the other
B) border irregularity
C) color variability – shades of brown, black, gray, red, and white
D) diameter greater than 6 mm
E) evolving – the lesion is changing in size, shape, or shade of color