Lever

 
"Early malignant melanoma is characterized by a gradually enlarging, deeply pigmented nodule, usually surrounded by erythema. Later the lesion becomes fungating and satellite lesions may appear. Ulceration is a late symptom."
 
Lever WF. Histopathology of the Skin. Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott, 1949:398–9.
 

Brief critique

 
Early melanoma is not characterized by a deeply pigmented nodule surrounded by erythema; it is a brownish macule. Only after about a decade or more does a melanoma become "fungating" and associated with metastases in the form of "satellite lesions." Ulceration (which is a sign, not a symptom) of a melanoma signals a poor prognosis.