Metastatic melanoma of the pituitary gland. Case report

Abstract

The authors report on the clinical features and imaging studies in a case of metastatic melanoma of the pituitary gland. Cerebral metastatic melanoma and pituitary metastasis from any source are commonly associated with systemic metastasis, whereas pituitary metastatic melanoma without widespread disease dissemination is distinctly rare. This 46-year-old man presented with diabetes insipidus and anterior pituitary dysfunction 5 years after he underwent resection of a cutaneous malignant melanoma of the neck. Magnetic resonance imaging demonstrated the presence of melanin within a sellar tumor mass. Transsphenoidal resection was performed and histopathological examination of tumor material confirmed metastatic melanoma. Postoperative [18F]fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography revealed no other focus of hypermetabolism in the patient's body.