Articles
Vol. 18 No. 2 (2026)
https://doi.org/10.4081/dr.2025.10435

A bibliometric study of the top 100 most-cited articles on melanoma: insights into research trends and characteristics

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Published: 18 August 2025
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Bibliometrics, immunotherapy, immune checkpoint inhibitors, melanoma, research characteristics

Authors

Jinhao Zhang
Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Head and Neck Oncology, Shanghai Ninth People’s Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai; College of Stomatology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, National Center for Stomatology, National Clinical Research Center for Oral Diseases, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Stomatology, Shanghai, China.
Xiangze Meng
Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Head and Neck Oncology, Shanghai Ninth People’s Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai; College of Stomatology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, National Center for Stomatology, National Clinical Research Center for Oral Diseases, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Stomatology, Shanghai, China.
Yun Wang
wangyun1@live.com
Department of Dermatology, Shanghai Ninth People’s Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
Wei Liu
Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Head and Neck Oncology, Shanghai Ninth People’s Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai; College of Stomatology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, National Center for Stomatology, National Clinical Research Center for Oral Diseases, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Stomatology, Shanghai, China.

Improving insights into current research and literature on melanoma enables healthcare providers to offer patients better care by applying the latest advancements. This bibliometric study analyzed the characteristics and trends in melanoma research through the top-cited articles. The top 100 most-cited articles on melanoma were published between 1969 and 2020, and the average number of citations was 36.8-893.9 (mean 176.8). Notably, the frequencies of the main key words, including antineoplastic agents, genetics, randomized controlled trials, metastatic melanoma, BRAF, and monoclonal antibodies, during 2010-2020 were significantly higher than during 1969-2009. Specifically, the main study topics after 2010 were drug research aspects, such as drug safety, drug efficacy, drug resistance, drug withdrawal, cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated protein 4 (CTLA-4), programmed cell death 1/programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-1/PD-L1), ipilimumab, nivolumab, trametinib, dabrafenib, vemurafenib, and various drug adverse effects. The emergence of immunotherapy caused a burst of citations and substantially changed the distribution of top-cited articles.

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How to Cite



1.
Zhang J, Meng X, Wang Y, Liu W. A bibliometric study of the top 100 most-cited articles on melanoma: insights into research trends and characteristics. Dermatol Reports [Internet]. 2025 Aug. 18 [cited 2026 Jul. 21];18(2). Available from: https://journals.pagepress.net/dr/article/view/10435
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