title: [Mucosal melanomas of the head and neck: State of the art and current controversies].
abstract: Mucosal melanomas of the head and neck (sinonasal and oral cavity) account for 1% of neoplasms, 4% of all melanomas and over 50% of all mucosal melanomas. They have a high metastatic potential. Five-year overall survival does not exceed 30%. Diagnosis may be difficult and includes adequate immunohistochemical staining. Risk factors, presentation and molecular biology are different from those of cutaneous melanomas. The mainstay of treatment is surgery and postoperative radiotherapy. Endoscopic surgery should be evaluated prospectively. Neck dissection is recommended for N0 oral cavity melanomas, while it can generally be omitted for sinonasal melanomas. Inoperable tumors can be treated with exclusive radiotherapy. Molecular guidance for metastatic cases is a relevant option despite low level of evidence, based on the rarity of disease and low response rates to chemotherapy. c-KIT inhibitors and immunotherapy appear promising.
authors.affiliation: CHRU de Poitiers, oncologie radiothérapie, 2, rue de la Milétrie, 86000 Poitiers, France. Electronic address: idriss.troussier@me.com.
authors.forename: Idriss
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Troussier
authors.affiliation: Hôpital Lariboisière, department of pathology, 2, rue Ambroise-Paré, 75475 Paris cedex 10, France.
authors.forename: Anne-Catherine
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Baglin
authors.affiliation: Centre Lacassagne, department of radiology, 33, avenue de la Lanterne, 06189 Nice, France.
authors.forename: Pierre-Yves
authors.initials: PY
authors.lastname: Marcy
authors.affiliation: Institut Gustave-Roussy, department of medical oncology, rue Camille-Desmoulins, 94000 Villejuif, France.
authors.forename: Caroline
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Even
authors.affiliation: Institut Gustave-Roussy, department of head and neck surgery, rue Camille-Desmoulins, 94000 Villejuif, France.
authors.forename: Antoine
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Moya-Plana
authors.affiliation: University Hospital "Maggiore della Carità", division of radiotherapy, via Solaroli, 17, 28100 Novara, Italie.
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Krengli
authors.affiliation: Centre Lacassagne, département de radiothérapie, 227, avenue de la Lanterne, 06200 Nice, France.
authors.forename: Juliette
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Thariat
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D003663:Decision Trees; D006258:Head and Neck Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology / Q000532:radiotherapy / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D008545:Melanoma / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology / Q000532:radiotherapy / Q000601:surgery; D008875:Middle Aged; D009062:Mouth Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology / Q000532:radiotherapy / Q000601:surgery; D009092:Mucous Membrane / Q000473:pathology; D009367:Neoplasm Staging / Q000379:methods; D010255:Paranasal Sinus Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology / Q000532:radiotherapy / Q000601:surgery; D011379:Prognosis; D018714:Radiotherapy, Adjuvant / Q000379:methods; D035583:Rare Diseases / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology / Q000532:radiotherapy / Q000601:surgery
keywords: Biologie moléculaire; Cavité buccale; Head and neck; Melanoma; Molecular biology; Mucosal melanoma; Mélanome; Mélanome muqueux; Nasosinusien; Oral cavity; Prognosis; Pronostic; Sinonasal; Sinus; Traitement; Tête et cou; Voies aéro-digestives supérieures