Primary malignant melanoma of gallbladder

Abstract

Gallbladder primary malignant melanoma (GPMM) is a rare and controversial entity. The existing controversy on the subject appears mainly because of the lack of deinitive objective criteriaof primitivity. Objective criteria proposed by the speciic literature for distinguishing GPMM from secondary gallbladder melanoma include the exclusion of previous primitive melanoma, absence of synchronous involment of other sites, the unicity of lesion, its polipoid or papilary shape and the presence of a junctional melanocitary component. After laparoscopic cholecystectomy in one of our patients, dark polypus inside the gallbladder was found. A malignant melanoma was diagnosed according to all ive criteria for GPMM.

Keywords

• gallbladder
• primary malignant melanoma
• laparoscopic cholecystectomy