This report describes the efficacy of skin examination for the early detection of second primary cutaneous melanomas among patients with nonfamilial melanoma. A series of 121 patients with newly diagnosed first primary cutaneous melanomas participated in a study of melanoma and dysplastic nevi. Of the 121 study participants, six patients were subsequently diagnosed with a second primary melanoma. For five of these patients, frequent skin examinations resulted in the detection of second primaries that were shallower in depth than was the first primary melanoma. In four cases, the second primaries were identified in low-risk growth phases (less than 0.76 mm); three of these low-risk tumors were melanoma in situ.