[Primary malignant melanoma of the cervix: report of four cases and review of the literature].

Objective: To investigate the clinical and pathological characteristics of primary cervical malignant melanoma, the treatment, and prognosis.

Methods: The clinical and pathological data of four patients with primary malignant melanoma of the cervix admitted to our hospital from Sept. 1996 to Aug 2002 were analyzed retrospectively. Their follow-up records were also reviewed. Nerve tissue protein S-100 and monoclonal antibody to melanoma (HMB-45) were examined in all cases by immunohistochemical method.

Results: All the patients received radical hysterectomy. In addition, three of them received chemotherapy, and one received immunotherapy simultaneously. One patient died six months and another 41 months after the operation respectively. One patient survived for 3 years, and another over 6 years free of tumor. S-100 protein and HMB-45 were positive in all patients.

Conclusions: The prognosis of primary malignant melanoma of cervix is relatively poor. S-100 protein and HMB-45 play important roles in the diagnosis of primary malignant melanoma of cervix. Radical hysterectomy, chemotherapy combined with dimethyl triazemo imidazole carboxamide (DTIC) and immunotherapy can improve the prognosis if the disease could be diagnosed in early stage.