Synchronous tonsil, gallbladder, and cardiac metastases without any other visceral metastases of malignant melanoma.
BACKGROUND
Malignant melanoma is a highly unpredictable tumor that has capacity to metastasize to any organ. A better understanding is needed of the clinicopathologic features of metastatic melanoma and, in particular, of its rare manifestations.


METHODS
A 33-year-old woman with a past medical history of malignant melanoma presented with symptoms of throat discomfort and bleeding. On physical examination, a dark pigmented lesion was observed on the right tonsil. Tonsillectomy was performed, and melanoma was diagnosed. Computed tomography of the thorax and abdomen revealed a filling defect in the right atrium and a 4-cm gallbladder mass. Echocardiography revealed a right atrial mass. No further metastasis was detected by whole body (18)F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography. Each metastasis was completely resected with clear margins. The pathologic diagnosis of the resected masses was malignant melanoma. 3 weeks after the final surgery, temozolomide was started. The patient has been followed up for 9 months after diagnosis of the first recurrence, and no new metastases have been detected.


CONCLUSIONS
We report a case with synchronous tonsil, gallbladder, and heart metastases without any other common sites of metastasis of melanoma. The patient was successfully treated with aggressive surgery followed by temozolomide.
Department of Medical Oncology, Faculty of Medicine, Trakya University, Edirne, Turkey. irfancicin@hotmail.com
Irfan
I
Cicin
Ufuk
U
Usta
Atakan
A
Sezer
Suat
S
Canbaz
Sernaz
S
Uzunoglu
Hakan
H
Karagol
Hakan
H
Genchellac
Ahmet Rifat
AR
Karasalihoglu
D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D005706:Gallbladder Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000556:secondary*; D006338:Heart Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000556:secondary*; D006801:Humans; D008545:Melanoma / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000556:secondary*; D009382:Neoplasms, Unknown Primary / Q000175:diagnosis*; D014067:Tonsillar Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000556:secondary*; D014781:Viscera