Nursing Process for Malignant Melanoma: ADPIE Explained
This paper applies the five-step ADPIE nursing process to the care of patients with malignant melanoma, the most lethal form of skin cancer. Beginning with a brief overview of melanoma's prevalence and lethality, the paper walks through each stage: gathering patient history and risk factors during assessment, identifying mole changes and secondary complications during diagnosis, setting short- and long-term goals during planning, executing interventions during implementation, and measuring outcomes during evaluation. The discussion draws on the American Nurses Association's nursing process framework to illustrate how holistic, patient-centered care can be systematically delivered to individuals affected by malignant melanoma.
- Introduction to Malignant Melanoma and the Nursing Process: Melanoma prevalence and ADPIE framework overview
- Assessment: Gathering patient history and risk factors
- Diagnosis: Identifying mole changes and secondary complications
- Planning: Setting short- and long-term patient care goals
- Implementation: Executing planned nursing interventions
- Evaluation: Measuring outcomes and refining care delivery
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What makes this paper effective
- The paper follows a clear, well-recognized clinical framework (ADPIE), allowing each section to build logically on the previous one and making the argument easy to follow.
- Each stage includes concrete, patient-specific actions—such as monitoring mole changes, addressing nutritional concerns, and planning wide local excisions—grounding the discussion in practical nursing care.
- Short-term and long-term goals are explicitly distinguished in the planning section, demonstrating an understanding of holistic, longitudinal patient care beyond immediate symptom management.
Key academic technique demonstrated
The paper effectively applies a professional framework (the ANA's ADPIE nursing process) to a specific clinical condition, using citations to authoritative nursing sources to support procedural claims. This technique—anchoring clinical description to an established theoretical or professional model—is a core skill in health sciences writing at the undergraduate level.
Structure breakdown
The paper opens with a brief introduction that contextualizes malignant melanoma within U.S. cancer statistics and introduces the ADPIE framework. It then dedicates one section to each of the five nursing process stages, maintaining parallel structure throughout. A short reference list citing the American Nurses Association and a clinical pocket guide closes the paper. Each body section is concise, focusing on the nursing actions and patient outcomes relevant to that particular stage.
Introduction to Malignant Melanoma and the Nursing Process
In the United States, skin cancer is the most common type of malignancy; one in five Americans risks developing some form of skin cancer over the course of their lives. Due to its high tendency to spread from one organ to another and to various parts of the body, malignant melanoma is recognized as the most lethal and deadly type of skin cancer. It may develop roots in the deeper layers of the skin, which are most likely to metastasize to other parts of the body.
According to the American Nurses Association (ANA, 2015), the ADPIE nursing process involves assessment, diagnosis, planning, implementation, and evaluation of the patient's condition. This process enables nurses to apply patient-focused care and to take a holistic approach when handling patients.
Assessment
Nurses should first gather all relevant information related to the patient's skin condition. Buchan and Roberts (2008) state that a patient's skin type, income and education level, degree of sun exposure, social class, and family history all determine a patient's risk of more severe malignant melanoma. Nurses must ask patients questions regarding all these factors, which makes the diagnosis process easier and more effective.
Nurses also assess the level of pain the patient is experiencing and monitor the patient's movement and behavior to determine how the skin condition affects their mobility, comfort, and overall quality of life. All of this information is then organized, validated, and recorded for future reference. Understanding risk factors at this stage is essential for guiding subsequent steps in the care process.
Diagnosis
The diagnosis stage determines the success of the entire nursing process (ANA, 2015). By examining the patient's moles, nurses are able to determine the level of pain the patient is experiencing and whether it is necessary to apply ointments when bathing or dressing the patient. If nurses recognize changes in the moles, they should inform the physicians, who can then schedule removal procedures if necessary.
After surgery, the patient may require additional nursing assistance with wound dressing. Other problems that may arise from the pain—such as poor nutrition, antisocial behavior, or anxiety—are also identified and addressed at this stage. The clinical features of melanoma inform the specific nursing diagnoses assigned to each patient.
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