Malignant melanoma of unknown primary site simulating a salivary gland neoplasm

Malignant melanoma with its varied clinical presentations and histomorphological patterns is a perplexing problem both for the diagnosticians and clinicians. A small proportion of melanomas present with metastatic tumors with unknown primary sites and at these sites they mimic the more common primary neoplasms. We hereby report a case of malignant melanoma presenting as a submandibular lump in a 40 year old female. This lump was present for six months and was rapidly increasing in size. On cytology it was diagnosed as salivary gland neoplasm.