Ryan's Research

Mortality

5-year survival rate between 74â93% and 10-year survival rates between 41â87%

Tumour-related mortality 32%

lymphovascular invasion, epithelioid cell type, and microsatellitosis are correlated with melanoma-related death

Cause

de novo (5%)

a genetic mutation that neither parent possessed nor transmitted

preexisting conjunctival primary acquired melanosis (PAM) (75%)

flat, speckled, brown lesions of the conjunctiva

hyperpigmentation of the conjunctival epithelium without melanocytic hyperplasia or melanocytic hyperplasia in the conjunctival epithelium with or without cytologic atypia

nevi (20%)

nevi are benign neoplasms or hamartomas composed of melanocytes (moles)

General Patient Characteristics

0.2 persons per million (1 per 5 million)

0.052 cases per year per 100,000 population

2% of ocular melanomas and fewer than 1% of malignant tumours of the eye

Patients 40-70 years of age

Commonly occurs in the intrapalpebral region near the limbus but may occur anywhere on the bulbar and palpebral conjunctiva as well as in the caruncle

It is seen predominantly in whites, and is rare in those of pigmented ethnicity

Terms

Melanocytic Hyperplasia:
Increased production of melanin producing cells.

Cytologic atypia:
Atypical cells (moles)

amelanotic:
cells do not make melanin

microsatellitosis:
a discontinuous tumor measuring later then 0.05 mm in diameter that is separated from the primary tumor by 0.3 - 2.0 cm

Ulceration (Cornea) :
Inflammatory or more seriously, infective condition of the cornea involving disruption of its epithelial layer

parotid:
largest salivary glands in humans

limbus:
border between cornea and sclera (whites of eye)

Stereotypical Case

A pigmented nodular lesion usually located at the limbus over or adjacent to an area of PAM in Caucasian patients during the sixth or seventh decade of life

Mobility

Metastatic involving primarily the parotid, preauricular and submandibular lymph nodes, develops in 26 percent of cases with a mortality rate of 13 percent over 10 years

The tumour is well known for local recurrence as well as distant metastasis

10-year estimated risk of regional nodal metastasis of 11% and a 10-year overall metastasis rate of 19%

Aggressive tumor, and recurrence rates may be as high as 51 percent over 10 year

Recurrence occurs due to amelanotic or mixed pigmentation, deep tumour invasion and incomplete surgical excision

Local recurrence of conjunctival melanoma has been reported in 56–65% of patients. About half of them experienced more than one recurrence<span text="" javascript"="" style="background: inherit; font: inherit; ">