Primary amelanotic melanoma of the mandibular gingiva

Abstract

Oral mucosal melanoma is a very rare type of malignant melanoma, the characteristics of which differ from those of cutaneous melanoma. Primary amelanotic melanoma of the mandibular gingi-va, which can invade the mandibular bone, is very rare worldwide. Here, we report a case in which we performed a reconstruction of the mandible and gingiva using the fibula osteocutaneous free flap procedure to treat a patient diagnosed with a primary amelanotic melanoma of the mandibular gingiva. The procedure was successful, and no recurrence was observed 10 months after sur-gery. Oral mucosal melanoma has a much poorer prognosis and a lower 5-year survival rate than cutaneous melanoma. However, recently, immunomodulatory therapies for mutations in melano-cytic lesions have been used effectively to treat the increasing number of patients developing this type of melanoma, thus improving the prognosis of patients with oral mucosal melanoma.