Primary melanoma of the oral cavity: ten cases and review of 177 cases from literature

2009

Oral melanoma is an infrequent but aggressive neoplasm. In contrast to cutaneous melanoma, it does not have a defi ned set of clinical and pathologic classifi cation criteria. We present 10 cases of primary melanoma of the oral mucosa, and review 177 cases published in the international literature. Patients and methods: We compiled a database of patients seen at our department between years 1990 and 2004. A retrospective study of this data was performed. Age, sex, localization and histopathology were all considered. Tobacco consumption and the presence of traumatic factors in the oral cavity were also compared. We compiled another database with 177 cases reported in the international litera…