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Multiple skin metastases of malignant melanoma with unusual clinical and histopathologic features in an immunosuppressed patient.

Egberts F, Kaehler KC, Brasch J, Schwarz T, Cerroni L, Hauschild A

Department of Dermatology, University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein, Kiel, Germany. fegberts@dermatology.uni-kiel.de

Immunosuppressive regimens may have significant impact on the number of pigmented lesions and the clinical appearance of nevi. Whether immunosuppression can also influence the clinical and histopathologic appearance of malignant melanocytic lesions is still a matter of debate. A patient was immunosuppressed because of heart and bone marrow transplantation. A clinically inconspicuous mole was removed from the left flank and was considered to be a papillomatous nevus. After 1 year, the patient developed multiple pigmented lesions over the entire body, which presented clinically as benign papillomatous nevi and histologically as atypical Spitz nevi. Three months later melanoma metastases were removed from the patient's left axilla, which finally resulted in the death of the patient. Thus, in retrospect, the eruptive pigmented lesions have to be considered as cutaneous melanoma metastases. The atypical clinical and histopathologic appearance of the melanocytic lesions as well as the course of disease may have been influenced by the immunosuppression.

Published 21 April 2008 in J Am Acad Dermatol, 58(5): 880-4.
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