Acral Lentiginous Melanoma of Foot and Ankle: A Clinicopathological Study of 7 Cases.

Background/aim: Acral lentiginous melanoma (ALM) is a rare entity on the foot. This study aimed to reveal its clinical presentations, histopathology and treatment options.

Materials And Methods: Seven cases of ALM involving foot were treated in our Institute in a 3-year period.

Results: The patients' age ranged from 38 to 84 years, with a mean of 65. The ratios of males to females and white to non-white were 4:3 and 5:2, respectively. Clinically, ALM presented as asymmetric, irregular shaped, black-brown, variegatedly discolored, papular, verrucoid, ulcerated or nodular lesions with or without pain. All ALMs were treated with either wide local excision (WLE) or toe amputation. Histologically, ALM was characterized by multiple single and nested atypical melanocytes growing along the dermal-epidermal junction, and extending into dermal layer in nodular growth pattern.

Conclusion: ALM is a rare, asymmetric, irregularly bordered, variegatedly pigmented lesion. WLE or toe amputation is the standard treatment option.