Melanoma risk after methotrexate exposure appears negligible

The use of low-dose methotrexate exposure was found to be associated with increased melanoma risk, although the absolute risk increase appears to be negligible, according to a study.

In this analysis, 2 independent reviewers utilized pooled data from 12 studies with 16,642 cases of melanoma to conduct a random-effects model meta-analysis.

Common indications for methotrexate use included rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, and inflammatory bowel disease. There was a small increased risk of melanoma in participants with methotrexate exposure compared with unexposed individuals (pooled relative risk, 1.15; 95% CI, 1.08-1.22). The increased risk did not persist in a sensitivity analysis when the largest study was excluded (pooled relative risk, 1.11; 95% CI, 1.00-1.24).

Reference
Yan MK, Wang C, Wolfe R, et al. Association Between Low-Dose Methotrexate Exposure and Melanoma: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. JAMA Dermatol. 2022;doi:10.1001/jamadermatol.2022.3337