Primary malignant melanoma of the lung: a case report of a rare tumor and review of the literature

Abstract

Primary malignant melanoma of the lung (PMML) is a rare malignancy that exhibits aggressive behavior and has a very poor prognosis. We are reporting on a case of PMML in an otherwise healthy 22-year-old Caucasian male with no significant past medical history and an unremarkable family history. The patient initially presented with a 2-month history of a cough and an unexplained 22-lb weight loss. His initial chest X-ray demonstrated opacification of the right lower lobe (RLL) of his lung and a subsequent computerized tomography scan (CT scan) of his lung revealed a large mass occupying most of his RLL (Figure 1). The patient subsequently underwent a bronchoscopy with endobronchial ultrasound. Biopsies revealed a poorly differentiated carcinoma. A positron emission tomography with low dose CT scan was performed per protocol and revealed an intensely hypermetabolic tumor with no evidence for lymphatic disease or extra-thoracic spread. The patient underwent a surgical exploration and a right lower lobectomy with a thoracic lymphadenectomy. The pathology including immunohistochemical stains demonstrated a malignant melanoma with no lymph node involvement. A physical examination including ophthalmic, mucosal, and skin examinations revealed no evidence for an extra-thoracic site of the disease. The patient had negative margins for resection and did not receive any adjuvant therapy and is alive and well with no evidence for recurrence 3 years after the resection.

Primary pulmonary melanoma with brain metastasis: a case description and literature analysis

“…Endobronchial lesions are present in the tumors, causing cough, hemoptysis, and pulmonary atelectasis (4). However, its pathogenesis is still debated, with some researchers (5) suggesting that melanocytes migrate to the respiratory tract during embryogenesis, where they transform into cancer cells. Other researchers hypothesized…”

Primary BRAF Mutant Melanoma of the Lung Treated with Immunotherapy and Pulmonary Bilobectomy: A Case Report

“…Primary melanoma of the lung (PPM) is extremely rare, accounting for only 0.4% of MM; it is usually endobronchial and exhibits symptoms such as cough, hemoptysis, post-obstructive pneumonia, lobar collapse, atelectasis, weight loss, and fatigue [ 6 ]. Up to 30% are diagnosed as incidental findings, being asymptomatic at the time of diagnosis [ 7 ]. Lymph node involvement is found in 40% of patients; in the case presented here, the patient had no positive nodes [ 6 ].…”

Primary malignant melanoma of the lung: a case report and literature review

“…In addition, younger PMML survivors were rarely seen. Recently, Yunce et al [21] reported a resection in a 22-year-old Caucasian. In our case, the PMML patient was a 57-year-old who succumbed to the disease 1 month after operation.…”