Case Study: Initial Gastrointestinal Symptoms in Hard Palate Melanoma Highlighting the Critical Diagnostic Role of 18F-FDG PET/CT

1

Mucosal melanoma of the hard palate is a rare and aggressive malignancy, accounting for approximately 2% of all melanoma cases.
2

The patient presented with chronic gastrointestinal symptoms, leading to a delayed diagnosis of hard palate melanoma with systemic metastases.
3

Whole-body 18F-FDG PET/CT imaging revealed a hypermetabolic primary lesion in the hard palate and extensive metastases.
4

Histopathological and immunohistochemical analyses confirmed the diagnosis of oral melanoma with metastases to the liver and bones.
5

The case highlights the critical role of 18F-FDG PET/CT in the early diagnosis and staging of rare malignancies like mucosal melanoma.

1