Amelanotic metastatic melanoma in a patient with oculocutaneous albinism.

Abstract

Melanomas are rare in patients who have albinism, compared with the frequent occurrence of squamous cell carcinomas and basal cell carcinomas. This report describes amelanotic metastatic melanoma in a 58-year-old Japanese man who had tyrosinase-positive oculocutaneous albinism. A prolonged bleeding time, facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy, and Gilbert syndrome were also present. Superficial spreading melanoma with evidence of spontaneous regression on his right forearm was suspected as a possible primary site. Twenty-two cases of melanomas in persons who have albinism have been reported.