title: Malignant melanoma rather than malignant cutaneous melanoma?
abstract: We report a case of an 84-year-old woman with a history of resected cutaneous melanoma who presented with asthenia, weight loss, and severe anemia. An esophagogastroduodenoscopy showed five black-pigmented submucosal tumors with large ulcerations in the antrum of the stomach and in the duodenum, suspected metastases from melanoma. Histopathological examination indicated the presence of melanin-containing tumor cells and confirmed an ulcerated pigmented melanoma. To examine the entire gastrointestinal tract, capsule endoscopy was performed and it showed a simultaneous massive involvement of the jejunum and ileum, with more than 40 lesions. This case highlights the importance of a complete endoscopic gastrointestinal examination in patients with melanoma metastatic to the bowel and suggests that capsule endoscopy is an easy, noninvasive, and effective diagnostic procedure to investigate small-bowel involvement.
authors: Digestive Endoscopy Unit, University Hospital, Messina 98100, Italy. stefanocrino@hotmail.com
authors: Stefano F
authors: SF
authors: Crinò
authors: Giuseppe
authors: G
authors: Scalisi
authors: Socrate
authors: S
authors: Pallio
authors: Giuseppa
authors: G
authors: Giacobbe
authors: Marcello
authors: M
authors: Cintolo
authors: Pierluigi
authors: P
authors: Consolo
mesh_terms: D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D053704:Capsule Endoscopy; D005260:Female; D005770:Gastrointestinal Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000556:secondary*; D006801:Humans; D008545:Melanoma / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000556:secondary* / Q000601:surgery; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery*