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Background Differences in relative survival (RS) of melanoma between histologic subtypes were discussed to be mainly caused by tumor thickness. Objective To investigate RS of melanoma, stratified by tumor thickness for each histologic subtype, and identify survival trends. Methods With use of cancer registry data on melanoma cases (International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision, codes C43.0–C43.9) diagnosed in Germany in 1997–2013, 5- and 10-year age-standardized RS stratified by histologic subtype and stratified or standardized by T stage was estimated by standard and modeled period analyses. We restricted 10-year RS analyses to patients younger than 75 years. Results We analyzed 82,901 cases. Overall, the 5- and 10-year RS rates were 91.7% and 90.8%, respectively. Prognosis worsened with increasing T stage for all histologic subtypes, but T-stage distribution varied substantially. Survival differences by histologic subtype were strongly alleviated after adjustment for T stage but remained significant. Overall, 5-year RS increased significantly (by 3.8 percentage points) between the periods 2002–2005 and 2010–2013. This increase was no longer seen after adjustment for T stage. Limitations Exclusion of cases on account of missing information on T stages, changes in the definition of T stages, and lack of information on screening and treatment limit our analyses. Conclusion Differences in RS between histologic subtypes were strongly mediated by tumor thickness. Over time, RS of melanoma increased as a result of changes in T-stage distribution.

Introduction Population-level survival has improved for common haematologic malignancies in the early 21st century. However, relatively few population-level data are available for rare haematologic malignancies. Methods Data were extracted from 12 cancer registries in Germany and the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results database in the United States (US). Cases of haematologic malignancies with an incidence of less than 1 per 100,000 were selected for analysis. Period analysis was used to determine 5-year relative survival (RS) for the years 2003–2012, and modelled period analysis was used to determine changes in survival between 2003–2007 and 2008–2012. Results Seven individual haematologic malignancies which met criteria were identified. Overall 5-year age-adjusted RS was 62.4% in Germany and 57.0% in the US in 2003–2012, with a good deal of variability by individual haematologic malignancy, ranging from less than 30% for chronic monomyeloid leukaemia to greater than 85% for hairy cell leukaemia and mycosis fungoides. Five-year RS increased significantly between 2003–2007 and 2008–2012 for patients with mantle cell lymphoma, Burkitt's lymphoma and hairy cell leukaemia in Germany and for patients with mantle cell lymphoma and anaplastic large-cell kinase+ anaplastic lymphoma in the US. Conclusions Survival for rare haematologic malignancies varied considerably by cancer entity. Overall 5-year RS was slightly higher in Germany compared to the US. Survival estimates increased for a minority of haematologic malignancies between 2003–2007 and 2008–2012. Further research into the best treatment options for rare malignancies is needed to further improve survival.