doiSerbia

Primary reconstruction of neck defect after excision of metastatic melanoma of unknown primary site with regional pectoral myocutaneous flap

Veličkov Asen (Clinikum Coburg, Clinic for Traumatology and Orthopedics, Coburg, Germany)
Kovačević Predrag (Clinical Center Niš, Clinic for Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Niš + Medical Faculty, Niš)
Veličkov Aleksandra (Medical Faculty, Niš)
Ghanaati Shahram (Goethe University, Clinic for Maxillofacial Surgery, Frankfurt am Main, Germany)

Introduction. Metastatic melanoma of unknown primary (MMUP) is already a well described oncologic phenomenon in the literature, whereas tissue defects’ reconstructions on the neck region always present a challenge for the reconstructive surgeon. Two cases of giant metastatic, skin infiltrative neck tumor masses are presented. In both cases MMUP was diagnosed. Both intraoperative tissue defects were reconstructed using pectoralis major (PM) regional flap. Outline of cases. The first patient was admitted with giant tumor mass on the right side of the neck. The fast growing mass appeared two months prior to the admission. Thorough examination showed no signs of primary tumor. Removal surgery was performed and the defect was reconstructed using the PM musculocutaneous flap. The second patient was admitted with large tumor mass on the left side of the neck. Thorough examination displayed no signs of any primary tumor. After the excision, the tumor mass and subsequent neck dissection, reconstruction followed, using the pedicled PM muscle flap and partial thickness skin transplants. There were no major complications in either case. The histopathological examinations presented metastatic melanoma diagnoses. Conclusion. Clinical outcome of MMUP described in literature is rather variable. Different studies have shown that prognosis in patients with MMUP is better than that in patients with diagnosed primary melanoma with metastatic disease. Therefore, the best initial course of action in those cases would be surgery, according to oncological principles, if possible. Neck defects’ reconstructions should fulfill both functional and esthetic demands. Due to the reliability and low cost of the procedure, PM regional flap presents a very good and trustworthy reconstruction modality.

Keywords: metastatic melanoma of unknown primary, pectoralis major flap, surgery, reconstruction, neck tumor