MALIGNANT TRANSFORMATION OF A NECROTIC MELANOCYTOMA OF THE CHOROID INAN AMBLYOPIC EYE

A 26-year-old man presented with an insidious loss of vision OD. He ha d amblyopia OD as a child secondary to congenital esotropia. Ophthalmi c examination revealed a large mass beneath his right retina near the posterior pole. He also had glaucoma and a rapidly developing cataract . Ultrasound detected a choroidal mass which was consistent with a mel anoma. The patient chose enucleation over radiation therapy as his tre atment modality. Pathologic evaluation of the tumor revealed a necroti c melanocytoma with a large malignant melanoma arising from its center that was comprised mainly of epithelioid cells. Malignant melanoma ar ising in a necrotic melanocytoma is an extremely rare event, and we be lieve this to be the first description of this event in a young patien t with an amblyopic eye.