Haydu LE, Lo SN, McQuade JL, et al. - Since there is a necessity to acquire an improved understanding of the incidence, risk factors, and timing of CNS metastasis in order to inform surveillance strategies for patients with melanoma, researchers used databases of 2 major melanoma centers in the United States and Australia and examined clinical data for patients with AJCC 8th edition stage III melanoma (n = 1,918), who received the diagnosis from 1998-2014, and underwent (negative) baseline CNS imaging within 4 months of diagnosis. The cumulative incidence of CNS metastasis was estimated to be 3.6%, 9.6%, and 15.8% at 1 year, 2 years, and 5 years, respectively. A significant impact of patient gender, age, AJCC stage, primary tumor site, and primary tumor mitotic rate on the risk of CNS metastasis was revealed in multivariable and conditional analyses. Experts found a significant link of high primary tumor mitotic rate with a raised risk of CNS metastasis at diagnosis and all subsequent time points examined. In these 2 large, geographically different cohorts of patients with stage III melanoma, findings revealed similar rates of CNS metastasis. The significance of primary tumor mitotic rate was emphasized.