Melanoma risk after in vitro fertilization: A review of the literature

The role of female sex hormones in the pathogenesis of malignant melanoma (MM) remains controversial. While melanocytes appear to be hormonally responsive, the effect of estrogen on MM cells is less clear. Available clinical data does not consistently demonstrate that increased endogenous hormones from pregnancy, or increased exogenous hormones from oral contraceptive pills and hormone replacement, impact MM prevalence and outcome.