Slow-growing amelanotic malignant melanoma of the esophagus with long survival: a case report and review of the literature.

 We report a case of amelanotic malignant melanoma of the esophagus (AMME), an exceedingly rare disease. A 77-year-old Japanese woman presented to our hospital with features suggestive of a middle esophageal submucosal tumor, which was diagnosed pathologically as AMME. The patient underwent thoracoscopic resection of the esophagus and laparoscopic gastric tube reconstruction.