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Primary gastric melanoma in adult population: a systematic review of the literature
Author(s) -
Schizas Dimitrios,
Tomara Nefeli,
Katsaros Ioannis,
Sakellariou Stratigoula,
Machairas Nikolaos,
Paspala Anna,
Tsilimigras Diamantis I.,
Papanikolaou Ioannis S.,
Mantas Dimitrios
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
anz journal of surgery
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.426
H-Index - 70
eISSN - 1445-2197
pISSN - 1445-1433
DOI - 10.1111/ans.16160
Subject(s) - medicine , melena , abdominal pain , stomach , population , melanoma , systematic review , weight loss , differential diagnosis , medline , surgery , pathology , obesity , environmental health , cancer research , political science , law
Background Primary gastric melanoma (PGM) is a rare malignant tumour of the stomach with poor prognosis. The aim of this systematic review was to assess the available literature on this entity and to highlight its biological behaviour and preferred treatment approach. Methods PubMed and Cochrane bibliographical databases were independently searched (last search: 2 February 2020) by two investigators for articles reporting on PGM in the adult population. Results Twenty‐five studies met the inclusion criteria and concerned collectively 25 patients (18 males and seven females) with an age of 63.4 ± 8.97 years (mean ± standard deviation). Main symptoms included abdominal pain (64%), weight loss (48%) and hematemesis or melena (32%). The most frequent tumour location was the body of the stomach (54.2%). All tumours were surgically resected and the majority of the patients had a partial gastrectomy (52%). Median recurrence time was 5 months and 12% of patients reached 5‐year survival landmark. Conclusion PGM is a rare disease characterized by an aggressive malignant behaviour. Its differential diagnosis from a metastatic lesion is crucial. A prompt diagnosis and therapeutic approach are needed. Further studies are required to elucidate the optimal management of this clinical entity.