AN UNUSUAL INTRAOSSEOUS MELANOMA IN THE MAXILLARY ALVEOLUS

A case is reported of a 31-year-old white man who presented with a sol itary melanoma in the maxillary alveolus. The lesion was located betwe en and had displaced the roots of the lateral incisor and canine and w as relatively well circumscribed on radiography. No mucosal origin or potential primary lesion was found, and a marginal excision resulted i n the patient remaining free from disease after 7 years of follow-up. Metastasis of melanoma to the jaws is rare even in disseminated diseas e, and this solitary lesion is unusual. Although metastasis from a reg ressed primary tumor cannot be excluded, some of the features raise th e possibility that this melanoma may have arisen as a primary tumor wi thin bone.