Unusual clinical presentation of cutaneous malignant melanoma metastatic to the parotid gland; Initially discovered by fine needle aspiration: Case report and review of literature

We report a case of malignant melanoma (MM) metastatic to the parotid gland, initially discovered on fine needle aspiration (FNA). The patient presented with a mass in the parotid gland area with previous history only significant for prostatic carcinoma. The initial FNA impression was melanoma. The...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Diagnostic cytopathology 2011-05, Vol.39 (5), p.373-376
Main Authors: Elshenawy, Yasmin, Youngberg, George, Al-Abbadi, Mousa A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aged
Biopsy, Fine-Needle
FNA
Humans
Male
melanoma
Melanoma - metabolism
Melanoma - secondary
parotid
Parotid Neoplasms - metabolism
Parotid Neoplasms - secondary
Skin Neoplasms - metabolism
Skin Neoplasms - pathology
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:We report a case of malignant melanoma (MM) metastatic to the parotid gland, initially discovered on fine needle aspiration (FNA). The patient presented with a mass in the parotid gland area with previous history only significant for prostatic carcinoma. The initial FNA impression was melanoma. The smears were hypercellular with bloody necrotic background. The cells were epithelioid with mild nuclear atypia. Discrete cytoplasmic pigmentation was seen. No lymphoglandular bodies were noticed. Fragments of benign salivary gland were also identified. The cytological diagnosis of MM triggered onsite thorough physical examination for potential primary, where a scalp pigmented lesion was discovered hidden by overlying covering hair. Our differential diagnosis included melanoma, metastatic carcinoma, and lymphoma. Further work up for melanoma with S100, HMB45, and Mart 1 confirmed our top differential diagnosis. We emphasize thorough physical examination in such circumstances, and the importance of onsite evaluation guiding clinicians looking for primary. Diagn. Cytopathol. 2011. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
ISSN:8755-1039
1097-0339
DOI:10.1002/dc.21454