MElanoma Research Lymph Node Prediction Implementation National_001 (MERLIN_001)

April 22, 2026 updated by: SkylineDx

A Prospective Registry Study of a Primary Melanoma Gene-signature to Predict Sentinel Node (SN) Status and Determine Its Prognostic Value for More Accurate Staging of SN-negative Melanoma Patients.

MERLIN_001 is a prospective registry study of a primary melanoma gene-signature to predict sentinel node (SN) status and to determine its prognostic value for more accurate staging of SN-negative melanoma patients.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Active, not recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Observational

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
1820

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Contact Backup

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Florida
      • Tampa, Florida, United States, 33612
        • Moffitt Cancer Center
    • Georgia
      • Atlanta, Georgia, United States, 30322
        • Emory University School of Medicine
    • Kentucky
      • Lexington, Kentucky, United States, 40506
        • University of Kentucky
      • Louisville, Kentucky, United States, 40292
        • University of Louisville
    • Michigan
      • Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States, 48109
        • University of Michigan
    • Minnesota
      • Rochester, Minnesota, United States, 55905
        • Mayo Clinic
    • New York
      • New York, New York, United States, 10065
        • Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
    • North Carolina
      • Durham, North Carolina, United States, 27705
        • Duke University
    • Utah
      • Salt Lake City, Utah, United States, 84112
        • Huntsman Cancer Institute

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sampling Method

Probability Sample

Study Population

Prospectively collected primary cutaneous melanoma patients who are elected per treating physician's recommendation to undergo sentinel lymph node biopsy.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Newly diagnosed patients with invasive malignant melanoma of the skin (AJCC 8th edition staging guidelines) elected to undergo sentinel lymph node biopsy per the treating physician's recommendation.
  • Male or female, age ≥18 years.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Full primary melanoma pathology report unavailable.
  • Documented clinically apparent nodal metastases at diagnosis.
  • Distant metastatic disease (M1a,b,c,d) clinically present at primary diagnosis
  • Any prior or concurrent primary invasive melanoma mapping to the same draining lymph node basin(s).
  • Documented history of another (prior or concurrent) primary invasive melanoma of T1b or greater at any site within the last 5 years.
  • Previous surgery in or radiation therapy to the draining lymph node basin(s) of the current primary melanoma.
  • Ocular, vulvar, perianal or mucosal melanomas or melanocytic tumors of uncertain malignant potential (MELTUMP) or atypical Spitz tumors.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Negative Predictive Value (NPV)
Time Frame: 2 years after inclusion
The predictive capability of the Merlin Assay to identify newly diagnosed primary cutaneous melanoma patients who have a low risk of presenting with a positive sentinel lymph node.
2 years after inclusion
Positive Predictive Value (PPV)
Time Frame: 2 years after inclusion
The predictive capability of the Merlin Assay to identify newly diagnosed primary cutaneous melanoma patients who have a low risk of presenting with a positive sentinel lymph node.
2 years after inclusion
Sensitivity and Specificity.
Time Frame: 2 years after inclusion
The predictive capability of the Merlin Assay to identify newly diagnosed primary cutaneous melanoma patients who have a low risk of presenting with a positive sentinel lymph node.
2 years after inclusion

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
3-5 year Recurrence-Free Survival (RFS)
Time Frame: 3-5 years after patient inclusion
Time between the date of sentinel lymph node biopsy procedure and the date of first melanoma recurrence (loco-regional or distant metastasis) or date of death (whatever the cause), whichever occurs first.
3-5 years after patient inclusion
3-5 year Distant Metastasis-Free Survival (DMFS)
Time Frame: 3-5 years after patient inclusion
Time between the date of sentinel lymph node biopsy procedure and the date of first distant metastasis or date of death (whatever the cause), whichever occurs first.
3-5 years after patient inclusion
3-5 year Overall Survival (OS)
Time Frame: 3-5 years after patient inclusion
Time between the date of sentinel lymph node biopsy procedure and the date of death (whatever the cause).
3-5 years after patient inclusion

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
SkylineDx

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Vernon K. Sondak, MD, Moffitt Cancer Center
  • Principal Investigator: Tina J. Hieken, MD, Mayo Clinic
  • Principal Investigator: Michael E. Egger, MD, MPH, University of Louisville

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
August 25, 2021

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
June 28, 2024

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
June 1, 2029

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
February 15, 2021

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
February 17, 2021

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
February 18, 2021

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
April 23, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
April 22, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
April 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • MERLIN_001

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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