Primary sellar melanocytoma: report of two cases treated at the same institution and their long-term outcome

Abstract

Sellar melanocytomas represent a small subgroup of primary melanocytic tumors arising from leptomeningeal melanocytes. They are benign, slow-growing tumors with a high risk of recurrence. We report two cases of sellar melanocytoma treated at the same institute. A 35-year-old woman presented with amenorrhea and an intrasellar mass with suprasellar extension simulating a hemorrhagic pituitary adenoma. The second case is a 51-year-old man with progressive visual loss and a recurrence of primary sellar and suprasellar melanocytoma. The first patient underwent gross total resection and the second patient underwent subtotal resection. Neither of them was treated with postoperative adjuvant therapies. The second patient had tumor regrowth 75 months after surgery; he therefore underwent gamma knife radiosurgery. Both patients are alive and well at the last follow-up (140 and 93 months, respectively).

Keywords:

• Sellar melanocytoma
• pituitary tumor
• transsphenoidal surgery
• primary melanocytic brain tumors
• leptomeningeal melanocytes

Ethical approval

The study has been performed in accordance with the ethical standards as laid down in the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Informed consent

Informed consent was obtained from both patients included in the study.

Disclosure statement

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest and financial interests or compensations.