Mhapuskar Amit, Umarji Hemant, Jain Nalini, Behere Rohit, Aditya Amita
Department of Oral Medicine and Radiology, Sinhgad Dental College and Hospital, Pune, India.
N Z Dent J. 2012 Sep;108(3):102-4.
Malignant melanomas represent one of the most life-threatening forms of cancer. Arising from melanocyte precursors, they have the ability to invade or readily metastasise to any organ. Intra-oral melanomas represent 1-2% of all oral malignancies, and 0.2-8% of all melanomas. Prognoses and eight-year survival rates for intra-oral malignant melanomas are poorer than for cutaneous malignant melanomas (20% and 60% survival, respectively) because of: the absence of symptoms in the early stage of the disease delaying diagnosis; difficulty in determining the width of the radical surgical excision due to anatomic limitations; and the rich blood supply to the region, which may facilitate haematogenic propagation. We report a case of a 65-year-old man with malignant melanoma of the anterior maxillary gingiva. Considering the poor prognosis associated with oral melanomas, it also emphasises the fact that suspicious pigmented lesions should be surgically removed and investigated further.
恶性黑色素瘤是最具生命威胁的癌症形式之一。它起源于黑素细胞前体，能够侵袭或轻易转移至任何器官。口腔内黑色素瘤占所有口腔恶性肿瘤的1%-2%，占所有黑色素瘤的0.2%-8%。口腔恶性黑色素瘤的预后和八年生存率比皮肤恶性黑色素瘤更差（生存率分别为20%和60%），原因如下：疾病早期无症状，延误诊断；由于解剖学限制，难以确定根治性手术切除的范围；以及该区域丰富的血液供应，这可能便于血行播散。我们报告一例65岁男性上颌前牙龈恶性黑色素瘤病例。鉴于口腔黑色素瘤预后不佳，这也强调了可疑色素沉着病变应手术切除并进一步检查的事实。
