title: Gastrointestinal bleeding as initial presentation of melanoma of unknown primary origin: report of a case and review of the literature.
abstract: The case of an 81-year-old patient, initially presenting with gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding, including melena and hematemesis is reported. Endoscopy revealed an ulcerated mass of the stomach corpus with immunohistochemistry stains consistent with metastatic melanoma. The thorough physical and paraclinical examination did not reveal any lesions or nodules as a primary site of the disease. The literature concerning this rare presentation of melanoma is also reviewed.
authors.affiliation: Third Department of Medicine, Athens School of Medicine, Athens, Greece.
authors.forename: E A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Kotteas
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Adamopoulos
authors.forename: P D
authors.initials: PD
authors.lastname: Drogitis
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zalonis
authors.forename: K V
authors.initials: KV
authors.lastname: Giannopoulos
authors.forename: E M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Karapanagiotou
authors.forename: M Wasif
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Saif
authors.forename: K N
authors.initials: KN
authors.lastname: Syrigos
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D006471:Gastrointestinal Hemorrhage / Q000209:etiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008545:Melanoma / Q000150:complications*