title: [A clinical and pathological study on primary oral mucosal malignant melanoma].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to investigate the association between clinical and pathological characteristics of primary oral mucosal malignant melanoma and the prognosis of this disease.
  
  
  METHODS
  Clinical and pathological characters of 73 cases primary oral mucosal malignant melanoma were investigated. The association between risk factors, such as black macule, lymph node metastases, invasive depth, clinic stages, pathologic types, and prognosis was analyzed using Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and Log rank test.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The age of the patients ranged from 24 to 80 years (Median age, 50). Among the patients, 43 were males and 30 were females. The most common locations of the tumor were palate and gingiva. The clinic stages of these patients were as the following: Stage I (46/73), Stage II (24/73), Stage III (3/73). The most common pathological type was nodular (44/73), followed by lentiginose malignant melanoma (15/73) and superficial spreading (1/73). According to the configuration of tumor cells, the most common type was the mixed cell type (37/73), followed by the epitheloid cell type (27/73) and the spindle cell type (9/73). Among the 73 patients, 43 were followed up, the 3-year and 5-year survival rates were 19.86% and 11.91% respectively. Black macule, lymph node metastases, invasive depth, clinic stages, pathologic types and therapeutic methods were significantly associated with the prognosis (P < 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The prognosis of the primary oral mucosal malignant melanoma is associated with black macule, lymph node metastases, invasive depth, clinic stages, pathologic types, and therapeutic methods.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, West China College of Stomatology, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China.
authors.forename: Yan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Zhixiu
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: He
authors.forename: Lanyan
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wu
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008297:Male; D008545:Melanoma / Q000473:pathology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009061:Mouth Mucosa / Q000473:pathology*; D009062:Mouth Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D011379:Prognosis; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D015996:Survival Rate