Late melanoma metastases in stomach and small bowel: a case report

Abstract

Background: Primary cutaneous malignant melanoma with gastric metastases is a rare phenomenon, which usually occurs within one year from the time of the primary tumor diagnosis. In this case, the diagnosis of primary melanoma was 8 years prior to gastric metastases diagnosis. Case Presentation: A 75-year-old male with a history of malignant melanoma presented with ferropenic anemia was found to have metastases to the stomach, detected on endoscopy. A Palliative Subtotal Gastrectomy was performed because of recurrent gastrointestinal bleeding. After surgery, the patient was referred to our oncology clinic for chemotherapy. Conclusion: Surgical intervention offered symptomatic relief while attempting to prolong the patient’s survival. Most publications on this topic are limited to single case-reports given the low frequency of gastric lesions in patients with primary cutaneous melanoma. This case report contributes to the understanding of this rare phenomenon while reaffirms that Metastatic Melanoma in the stomach should be suspected in any patient with a previous history of Melanoma.