A case of malignant melanoma in the soft palate responding to preoperative combined treatment using chemotherapy, irradiation and local administration of interferon (INF-β)

A 78-year-old female was referred to our clinic for evaluation of pigmentation on the soft palate. Oral examination revealed three separate dark pigmented spots on the soft palate which were unassociated with bleeding, pain, or ulceration, and brown discoloration extending to the bilateral and posterior pharyngeal walls. A diagnosis of malignant melanoma was made by biopsy of one spot. After 104×106 IU of interferon, 30 Gy irradiation, and 2 courses of chemotherapy, one of the three lesions in the soft palate exfoliated and discoloration of the lateral and posterior pharyngeal walls disappeared, while the other two lesions persisted. She subsequently underwent a wide resection, including the entire soft palate and the posterior area of the hard palate, to treat the residual lesions. Histologic examination of the resected specimen did not reveal any remaining melanoma cells. Fifteen months after treatment she has not shown any evidence of local recurrence or regional lymph node or distant metastasis.