Reduced Port Laparoscopic Splenectomy for Isolated Splenic Metastasis of Malignant Cutaneous Melanoma

Abstract

Background:

Isolated splenic metastasis from malignant melanoma is exceedingly rare and is usually associated with disseminated disease.

Methods:

A 68-year-old man with a history of stage IIB nodular melanoma of the scalp (Breslow thickness 4 mm), treated with wide excision, negative sentinel lymph node biopsy, and adjuvant immunotherapy, was found on routine surveillance positron emission tomography/computed tomography to have a solitary hypermetabolic splenic lesion (SUVmax 8.8). No other metastatic sites were identified.

Results:

A laparoscopic splenectomy was performed without intraoperative or postoperative complications. Histopathological analysis confirmed metastatic melanoma. The patient recovered uneventfully and remains under oncological follow-up.

Conclusion:

This case highlights the role of laparoscopic splenectomy as a safe and effective diagnostic and therapeutic approach for isolated splenic metastasis in selected melanoma patients.