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Palpebral cutaneous melanomas: a review of 17 cases from a tertiary center
Author(s) -
Tas Faruk,
Erturk Kayhan
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
international journal of dermatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.677
H-Index - 93
eISSN - 1365-4632
pISSN - 0011-9059
DOI - 10.1111/ijd.14212
Subject(s) - medicine , eyelid , superficial spreading melanoma , canthus , palpebral fissure , lentigo maligna melanoma , perineural invasion , dermatology , lentigo maligna , melanoma , lymphovascular invasion , lesion , pathology , surgery , metastasis , cancer , cancer research
Background Melanomas arising from eyelid skin are exceptionally rare, accounting for <1% of eyelid malignancies and all cutaneous melanomas. The aim of this study was to identify the histopathological features and clinical behaviors of the palpebral skin melanoma patients from a single tertiary institution. Patients and methods Seventeen Caucasian patients diagnosed with eyelid cutaneous melanoma were analyzed retrospectively. Results The median age of patients was 59 years, and females were predominant ( n = 11). The most frequent localization of the lesions was the lower eyelid ( n = 8). Nodular ( n = 4), lentigo maligna ( n = 3), and the superficial spreading melanoma ( n = 3) were the most common histopathological subtypes. Only three patients had in situ melanomas. Tumor infiltrating lymphocytes were present in most of the patients; however, only a few cases had lymphovascular invasion. Regional lymph node involvement was present in two patients, and distant metastasis was found in only one patient. Four patients (24%) had disease relapses during follow‐up, all of which were locoregional. The median relapse‐free survival (RFS) time and 5‐year RFS rate were 26.3 months and 60.4%, respectively. Two patients (12%) died. Median OS time was 32.1 months, and 5‐year OS rate was 84%. Being elderly (older than 60 years of age) ( P = 0.05), lesion originating from canthus compared to eyelid ( P = 0.03) and presence of recurrence in follow‐up ( P = 0.04) have been found as poor prognostic indicators for OS. Conclusion Palpebral skin melanoma is associated with favorable clinical features, and it is correlated with better survival rates.