title: Late diagnosis of nodular melanoma of the foot in a 74-year-old Brazilian man.
abstract: The incidence and mortality of malignant melanoma is increasing. Its early diagnosis can contribute to a favorable prognosis. We report a 74-year-old black man with a dark brown mole in the right plantar area, that grew slowly in the last decade. A biopsy of the lesion revealed a nodular malignant melanoma. A wide excision of the tumor was performed 18 months ago, followed by chemotherapy for nine months. At admission, the patient was debilitated, and presented with numerous nodules in the lower limb and suprapubic area. Imaging studies disclosed chest and abdominal nodules. The patient died 13 days after admission.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Armed Forces Hospital, Brasilia, Brazil. vitorinomodesto@gmail.com
authors.forename: Vitorino M
authors.initials: VM
authors.lastname: Santos
authors.forename: Cristina T
authors.initials: CT
authors.lastname: Leal
authors.forename: Martha J M
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Vasconcellos
mesh_terms: D000008:Abdominal Neoplasms / Q000556:secondary*; D000368:Aged; D057210:Delayed Diagnosis; D017809:Fatal Outcome; D005534:Foot Diseases / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000556:secondary*; D008297:Male; D008545:Melanoma / Q000556:secondary*; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*