and the Locus of Control. A "melanoma adjustment score" was

also recorded based on the patient's rating on a scale of 1

to 100 the amount of personal adjustment needed to handle or

cope with having melanoma and having surgery for it.

 For the purpose of data analysis, the first series was

divided into halves. In the first group, psychological

variables were identified which significantly ( (<.05) dif-

ferentiated patients who had a recurrence from those who had

not. These variables were then applied as a predictor of

recurrence for the second group.

 According to the authors, the melanoma adjustment score

discriminated those with and without recurrence of melanoma

by one year ( < 05). Patients who did not have a recurrence

as a group expected more life adjustment in order to cope

with their disease. The independence of this variable from

biological factors was suggested by the finding that the

adjustment score did not correlate significantly with the

number of malignant lymph nodes identified through surgery;

this an important prognostic indicator. The authors reported

that combining the information on malignant lymph nodes with

the melanoma adjustment score improved the accuracy of

prediction in the group with recurrence. Depression, on the

other hand, did not predict recurrence.

 Rogentine et al. (1979) suggested that "subjects scoring

low on the scale are using denial or repression of